DOCUMENT RESUME ED 403 333 UD 031 354 AUTHOR Koritz

DOCUMENT RESUME

ED 403 333 UD 031 354

AUTHOR Koritz, Douglas, Ed.; And Others TITLE_ Crossing Boundaries: Collaborative Solutions to Urban Problems. Selected Proceedings of the National Conference on Urban Issues (1st, Buffalo, New York, November 11-13, 1994). INSTITUTION State Univ. of New York, Buffalo. Coll. at Buffalo. Center for Multidisciplinary Applied Research in Urban Issues. PUB DATE 95 NOTE 270p. AVAILABLE FROMState University of New York College at Buffalo, 1300 Elmwood Avenue, Buffalo, NY 14222-1095. PUB TYPE Collected Works Conference Proceedings (021) Reports Evaluative/Feasibility (142)

EDRS PRICE MFOI/PC11 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS Black Students; *Cooperation; *Disadvantaged Youth; Economic Factors; Elementary Secondary Education; Hispanic Americans; Minority Groups; Student Characteristics; Teacher Certification; *Teacher Education; *Teaching Methods; *Urban Problems; Urban Schools; Urban Teaching; Urban Youth

ABSTRACT Selected papers are presented from a national conference on urban issues. They are:(1) "Collaboration as a Social Process: Inter-Institutional Cooperation andEducational Change" (Charles F. Underwood and Hardy T. Frye);(2) "Mobilizing the Village To Educate the Child" (Valerie Maholmes);(3) "Pathways to Teaching: An Urban Teacher Licensure Program"(Lucindia A. Chance, and others.; (4) "Post-B.A. Paraprofessionals: ?reparation for UrbanTeachings" (June A. Gordon and Alice V. Houston);(5) "Training Teachers To Address the Question: Are Urban StudentsDifferent?" (Judith W. Simpson);(6) "The Relational Aspects of School, Family, andAt-Risk Student Self-Esteem: A Qualitative Study"(Christee L. Jenlink); (7) "The Ghettoization of the African-American andthe Potential for Economic Reform" (Curtis Haynes, Jr.);(8) "Patterns of Discourse Concerning Hispanic Students and CompensatoryEducation" (Theodora Lightfoot); (9) "'Permanent Temporaries and FormalCasuals': Collaborative Solutions to the UrbanUn/Underemployment Crisis" (M. Bahati Kuumba); (10) "The Massachusetts AvenueProject: Community Revitalization on Buffalo's West Side" (Gary S.Welborn); (I1) "Homeownership as a Social Equalizer" (Ted P.Schmidt); (12) "Public Sector Unions and the Changing UrbanPolitical Economy" (Lawrence G. Flood);(13) "Small Business Incubation as a Tool forSustainable Economic Development in Inner-CityCommunities" (Thomas S. Lyons, Gregg A. Lichtenstein, and SumedhaChhatre);(14) "The Role of the Black Church in Changing Times: Empoweringthe Community for Survival" (Sharon E. Moore);(15) "Values as an Intervening Variable in the Commission of Crime: A Call for theCollaboration of Systems" (Barbara Huddleston-Mattai); (16) "The UrbanNeighborhood Collective: A Model for Empowerment throughSpace within the Inner-City Landscape" (A. David Nieves); (17) "YouthViolence and the Changing Family: A Study of Family BackgroundFactors" (Eddie Davis); (18) "Diagnosis Critical: Policy Paradigms andHealth Care of Urban African-Americans through the AIDS Era" (DavidMcBride); (19) "Black Adolescent Identities, Multiculturalismand the Struggle for Representation in UrbanEducation" (Garrett A. Duncan); (20) "Afrocentric Strategies andtheir Promise for Solving Problems Males'in Urban Areas" (Ron Stewart); and Affecting African-American and Project South: Weapons in the Handsof (21) "Liberation Research the Oppressed"(M. Bahati Kuuma, Jerome Scott, and Walda (SLD) Katz Fishman).Individual papers contain references. The State University of New York College at Buffalo Selected Proceedings of the q- . r2t First National Conference

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EST COPY AVMLAB SELECTED PROCEEDINGS OF THE FIRST NATIONAL CONFERENCE ON URBAN ISSUES NOVEMBER 11-13, 1994 Hyatt Regency, Buffalo, New York

Conference Director P. Rudy Mattai

Managing Editor Janet Riley-Hunt

Consulting Editors:* Douglas Koritz Stephen Phelps Kevin Railey

Advanced Technical Support Jeffrey Hensgen

PUBLISHED BY STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK COLLEGE AT BUFFALO President, F.C. Richardson 1300 Elmwood Avenue Buffalo, New York 14222

Editors' names on front and inside covers appear in alphabetical order Contents

Collaboration as a Social Process: Inter-Institutional Coopera- tion and Educational Change 1 Charles F Underwood Hardy T Frye University of California

Mobilizing the Village to Educate the Child 15 Valerie Maholmes Yale University

Pathways to Teaching: An Urban Teacher Licensure Program 27 Lucindia H. Chance Lana J. Smith Thomas A. Rakes Steve M. Ross Duane M. Giannangelo University of Memphis

Post-B.A. Paraprofessionals: Preparation for Urban Teaching 38 June A. Gordon Western Washington University Alice V Houston Seattle Public Schools

Training Teachers to Address the Question: Are Urban Students Different? 49 Judith W. Simpson S.U.N.Y College at Buffalo

The Relational Aspects of School, Family, and At-Risk Student Self-Esteem: A Qualitative Study 59 Christee L Jenlink Tulsa Public Schools

4 The Ghettoization of the African-American and the Potential for Economic Reform 71 Curtis Haynes, Jr S.U.IV.Y College at Buffalo

Patterns of Discourse Concerning Hispanic Students and Compensatory Education 82 Theodora Lightfoot University of Wisconsin Madison

"Permanent Temporaries and Formal Casuals": Collaborative Solutions to the Urban Un/Underemployment Crisis 104 M. Bahati Kuumba S.U.IV.Y. College at Buffalo

The Massachusetts Avenue Project: Community Revitalization on Buffalo's West Side 117 Gary S. Welborn S.U.N.Y. College at Buffalo

Homeownership as a Social Equalizer 127 Ted P Schmidt S.U.N.Y. College at Buffalo

Public Sector Unions and the Changing Urban Political Economy 140 Lawrence G. Flood S.U.N.Y. College at Buffalo

Small Business Incubation as a Tool for Sustainable Economic Development in Inner-City Communities 150 Thomas S. Lyons University of Louisville Gregg A. Lichtenstein Ohio University Sumedha Chhatre University of Louisville

The Role of the Black Church in Changing Times: Empower- ing the Community for Survival 162 Sharon E. Moore Seton Hill College Values as an Intervening Variable in the Commission of Crime: A Call for the Collaboration of Systems 177 Barbara Huddleston Mattai S.UN.Y College at Buffalo

The Urban Neighborhood Collective: A Model for Empower- ment through Space within the Inner-City Landscape 188 A. David Nieves Binghamton University

Youth Violence and the Changing Family: A Study of Family Background Factors 200 Eddie Davis S.UN.Y. College at Buffalo

Diagnosis Critical: Policy Paradigms and Health Care of Urban African-Americans through the AIDS Era 213 David McBride Pennsylvania State University

Black Adolescent Identities, Multiculturalism and The Struggle for Representation in Urban Education 226 Garrett A. Duncan Claremont Graduate School

Afrocentric Strategies and their Promise for Solving Problems Affecting African-American Males in Urban Areas 239 Ron Stewart S.UN.Y. College at Buffalo

Liberation Research and Project South: Weapons in the Hands of the Oppressed 253 M. Bahati Kuumba S.UN.Y College at Buffalo Jerome Scott Project South Waldo Katz-Fishman Howard University

6 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 1

COLLABORATION AS A SOCIAL PROCESS: INTER- INSTITUTIONAL COOPERATION AND EDUCATIONAL CHANGE

Charles F. Underwood Hardy T. Frye Urban Community-School Collaborative University of California Office of the President

The problems of urban education are the problems of the global city. All too many urban youth live in economically, medically, physically,andsociallyprecariouscircumstanceswithserious consequences for their well-being (Blanc et al., 1994; Edelman, 1981; Glasgow, 1980, 1987; Oliver,1988; Sassen, 1991). Their school problems begin with the fact that, from their earliest years, many urban youth live exceptionally difficult lives. Because the problems they face are global in nature, no single institution can alone successfully address the complex challenges to urban education. We can only bring about real change in the lives of urban children through a long-term, inter- institutionalandcross-disciplinaryprocessthatcomprehensively addresses a wide range of both school and community concerns (Duster et al., 1990; Underwood and Frye, 1992; Blanc et al., 1994). Since its creation in July 1990, the Urban Community-School Collaborative has helped build collaborations between University of California campuses and school districts and community organizations focused on advancing the academic achievement of urban youth. It has worked with key representatives from UC campuses, school districts, and community-based organizations throughout the state to develop working models for long-term collaborations among the University, schools, and community-based organizationsmodels specifically appropriate for the localities in which they are developed. In each locality, the collaborations take their own direction, with the issues and strategiesdefinedbythecommunity,school, andcampus representatives involved. In some areas, where collaborative ventures Page 2 Underwood & Frye were already in operation, the Collaborative has served merely to help secure funding and technical support. In other areas, the Collaborative has functioned as a convener, bringing the principal players in each locality together for discussions, and on the basis of these discussions, has further served as a catalyst for developing collaborative efforts specifically appropriate for each locality. In order to establish school sites as focal points for community mobilization, cautious collaborative planning is indispensable. During the first couple of years of the Collaborative's existence, we sponsored meetings bringing together university faculty and staff with local school and community people, representing a variety of ongoing local programs and projects. Not unexpectedly, we found that similar kinds of social dynamics occurred in the several urban areas where we worked. We opened one initial meeting with a statement that we had been excited to learn that there were a number of educational initiatives already taking place in that area. The statement was met with general skepticism and laughter. One participant commented, "You've heard wrong. There's nothing going on here," and everyone present university, school district, and community people alikeagreed with obvious dismay that very little was being done for the diverse youth in their area. In the face of this response, we set aside the meeting's agenda and asked all the participants to describe their respective programs and activities briefly. By the time we had finished going around the table, each person giving his or her individual program description, there was a growing sense of excitement and opportunity among the participants. They were suddenly aware that they were not merely working in isolation, individually, but that there were others in the community working on similar kinds of efforts. They saw that there was a great potential for productive collaboration, and the subsequent discussion took on a more direct, open, and fruitful tone. At subsequent meetings in several other localities, an equivalent social process occurred, with the community, school, and university participants beginning to make tentative statements about possible linkages. Of course, this first step did not prevent subsequent conflict. Conflict, we soon realized, is an often ignored yet inevitable feature in inter-institutional collaboration. Each constituency, each institution, and FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 3

each faction within each institution has its own interests, objectives, and internal constraints. Moreover, the individuals from each constituency have their own language, their own vocabulary of motive, their own culture, as it were, for describing and addressing the social world on which we were jointly focusing. Over the past decades, because the members of these very different constituencies had not conversed in any persistent way, these languages and motives had largely diverged. In our initial discussions, as a result, there was relatively little common understanding about what the main problems were in urban education, and almost no agreement on what the solutions might be. In the case of Oakland, for instance, the university people perceived the problem as a general failureinthe areas of curriculum development, teacher professional development, parentalinvolvement,as wellasthe impoverishment of a large proportion of the student population served. The school people saw it as a function of budgetary constraints, curriculum issues, and a general lack of external support for education. The community people, on the other hand, generally saw the problem as the pervasive neglect and abandonment of their children's physical, spiritual, cognitive, and cultural needs by the mainstream institutions of the larger society. In brief, each saw the problem as one in which they themselves had been consistently engaged, without the informed support of the others. In fact, each saw the other constituencies as almost perversely disinterested and unhelpful in addressing what they saw as the "real" problem. In this sense, the triadic nature of the group dynamic we had established eventually proved fortuitous. In the past, most collaborative efforts in education have been dyadic. They involved universities and schools, or school and communities, or in very rare cases, universities and local communities. When these constituencies actually worked together, their different perspectives were often mismatched. The result in several of the localities where we worked was a general history of incidental projects that lasted briefly and faded out, leaving a growing legacy of mutual suspicion and distrust. It became clear to us that collaboration in urban education is not a simple matter of different institutions felicitously working out strategies amenable to all on the basis of general good will. In the process of forging university-

9 Page 4 Underwood & Frye community-school collaborations, we found that we necessarily had to begin with the often widely divergent interests of each constituency. The bottom line, we explicitly stated at the beginning of the efforts in each locality, was the recognition that the various constituencies were coming to the table with their own interests and with the recognition that they should feel free to drop out, if they found that their interests were not being met by the collaboration. However, as mentioned, the triadic nature of the collaboration established a social process that broke down the legacy of distrust among the constituencies. Collaboration among thesethreeinstitutionalconstituencies involved forms of reciprocal relationship similar to those which Simmel described for dyadic and triadic "sociation" among individuals. Perhaps even more important, as Simmel (1950) suggested, is the fact that a triad potentially establishes a structure that is independent of its individual constituents. The inclusion of the third party in the social relationship provides for transition to a new social process involving conciliation and the dissolution of absolute contrast between the other two parties, although at times it may create that contrast (Simmel 1950). In this dynamic, the third party may play either a manipulative (divisive) or a mediating (conciliatory) role with respect to the other two parties in the triad. In this problematic politics of identity, the majority role of two parties in relation to the third is of particular theoretical and practical significance. In practice, as we attempted to build collaborations, we found that when only two of the constituencies were present, it was very difficult to move beyond the level of mutual suspicion, accusations, and blaming. Each party blamed the other, if at times in rather veiled or diplomatic terms, for the present state of urban education. However, when we succeeded in bringing all three constituencies to the table, we found that an intriguinglypredictable conflictualyet ultimately conciliatory pattern took place. Almost invariably in our planning meetings, we observed that two of the parties verbally ganged up on the third. School and community people blamed the university. Community and university people blamed the schools. School and university people blamed parents and the community. In the course of these successive challenges to each third party's role, an interesting social process occurred. In challenging the third

10 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 5 party, each of the first-and-second party dyads came to realize that although they differed in some respects, they clearly held certain common expectations, goals and interests. For example, in one Oakland meeting, an African American community leader castigated the University's School of Education as a self-serving institution interested only in theory and not in real problems, only to discover that the School of Education Dean was not only present but seated immediately to his right. Other community and school district people nodded their heads and spoke heatedly in agreement with the community leader. In their surprise at agreeing on something, their criticisms turned into an amused banter focusing humorously on the School of Education. Meanwhile, the community leader and the Dean, given their physical proximity, exchanged a few quiet words of introduction. The community leader then became more circumspect. Hisinitialposition had been challenged, and he found himself looking into the face of the representative of the organizations he himself had challenged. He took back some of his more pejorative remarks and represented the School of Education in more conciliatory terms; at the same time, the Dean acknowledged that there was considerable truth to the community leader's argument, although he asserted that the School of Education was by no means a monolithic institution, and that it included a number of faculty and staff who were indeed committed to urban school change and could potentially be drawn into the collaboration, if the school and community people were interested. The two leaders then raised questions about how they might work together more productively, and other community and school people followed suit with several suggestions. This triadic social process was not usually so demonstrative and quick in resolution, but the fact is that over a period of timein Oakland it took almost a year and one-halfthe discourse among the participants slowly changed. The three constituencies began to discern areas where their interests and expectations overlapped and, in fact, concurred. Importantly, community leaders came to understand and make use of the jargon of school administrators and university professors, at first jokingly and later in earnest, and the administrators and professors increasingly began to frame their statements in the

r. 1 1: Page 6 Underwood & Frye

languages of school and community participants. Similarly, in the monthly planning meetings in Oakland, for example, one of the ongoing problems had been that the school district representatives had long maintainedvirtualsilence ontheirview of thepotentialfor collaboration. At the end of one meeting, they were finally challenged by several community and university people. To date, all of the meetings had taken place on the university's campus, and itwas suggested at this time that the next month's meeting be held at the school district office. It was, and this fact apparently gave the school district a greater sense of ownership in the collaborativeprocess. Afterwards, its representatives became fully engaged in defining what the nature of the emerging collaborative venture was to be. In short,as a result of a complex sociolinguistic process, the community, school, and universityparticipantsdeveloped a shared languagea shared vocabulary of motive, asit werefor identifying problems and developingstrategiesforbuildingalong-term,comprehensive collaborative effort.

After months of discussions we began work with K-12 school sites in various cities, including San Diego, Sacramento, and Oakland. But this long period of hard negotiating was important for tworeasons: it helped establish mutual trust, and it helped in working out what strategies and activities were open to us, given internal institutional constraints, and what each institution's role was to be. In Oakland, through a collaborative process guided by the school district,we reached a compromise selection of a middle school pilot site in West Oakland. Over a period of two years, UC Berkeley faculty, staff, and students have joined with school personnel and members of the West Oakland community to create a school-based site for collaborative mobilization efforts. This initiative, called the Oakland Urban School Field Station, represents a locus for bringing the University's substantial human and technical resources to bear on problems and issues identified by the local community and school district. Our intent was touse this school site as a pilot for developing the collaborative process at other

12 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 7 schools sites throughout the district, a process which is proving tobe slow and painstaking. Located near downtown Oakland, the school site servesseventh and eighth graders from some of the projects and neighborhoodshardest hit by the economic forces that have devastated the nation'surban centers. The student population seems to beshifting somewhat. While formerly largely African American, the student population nowhas growing numbers of Latino and Asian youth. These studentsshare many of the characteristics seen amongtheir contemporaries in other urban schools. A large percentage are on AFDC; many,however, are unwilling to declare this status, and the school is thus ineligiblefor Chapter I funds. The faculty teaching this student population issmall but diverse. Most have been at the school for some time, althoughfour new teachers have been hired just this year.Unfortunately, the school site has a limited number of parents who are willing to help outwhen called and who respond positively when kept informedof their children's school progress and behavior. One aspect of theharshness of these students' lives is their precarious existence outside theclassroom. The principal estimates that over 60 percent of the students livewith neither parent. Many, moving from grandparent to aunt to oldersister, change their residence from week to week or day to day. It waspartially for this reason that we framed our efforts in the community notsolely on the basis of parental involvement,but on the basis of the active engagement of people in the community at large,including parents, leaders of community-based organizations, active communityelders, committed workers in neighborhood social agencies, and others. With these school and community characteristics in mind,the principal, two community members, and three university facultyand staff met regularly to discuss the framework for the WestOakland Urban School Field Station. The principal had alreadyinitiated a program of schoolwide staff andcurriculum development. The Field Station collaboration was able to build on this effort and bring in greater resources to move it forward. Initially, wesponsored a school staff retreat. There, the school's faculty were asked toidentify the students' chief problems. They generated an almost interminable list ofspecific behaviors preventing student success in school. University participants Page 8 Underwood & Frye

then helped to analyze these myriad behaviors and contextualizethem within a community-oriented perspective. Working with teachersand community participants, UC faculty and students then conductedan exploratory, qualitative survey of parents and of teachers, from all the academic departments at the school site. Thissurvey demonstrated significant overlap in teachers' and parents' respective viewson the skills,attitudes, and behaviors that were considered essential for students to have upon completing middle school. In short, while the school and its community faced grave circumstances, theywere by no means devastated by those circumstances. They were already beginning to rethink the ways they approached the problems they faced andwere open to working with people and resources from outside the schoolas they worked toward bringing their own school vision into fruition.As such, the Field Station established the school siteas a potentially productive focal point not only for its own rejuvenation, but also for mobilizing the community around it. The Urban School Field Station represented the framework by which school faculty and staff could accomplish this goal with the assistance of external humanand technical resources for which they sawa need. The Field Station in this sense served to institutionalize the process for engaging teachers collegially with each other and with community members,as well as with university and local professional and business people, in student development and community mobilization.

In the course of planning meetings, which inmany ways replicated the tenuous triadic social process ata more localized level, we eventually agreed upon a basic structure revolving aroundan intensive summer workshop, and regular follow-up workshops throughout the school year. Attending these workshopswere the principal, a core group of five teacher fellows, five university faculty and staff fellows,and five community fellows, with fellowships or incentive stipends being offered to school and community fellows for their participation (the university fellows were to provide in-kind support orwere to be supported through grant-writing).Additionalconsultantsfrom thecommunity,the

14 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 9 university, and other institutions were brought in to work out a common understanding of the social, health, and educational problems facing the school, the community, and its students and to develop a common agenda for addressing those problems. The theoretical objective was not only to establish a common universe of discourse but also to create a growing cadre of school, community, and university people consistently working on the issues at hand. Each year, the Field Station brought in five new teachers, five new community members, and five new university representatives into the collaboration, with the Fellows of the past year serving as leaders in the developing collaborative effort. Given the size of the school faculty, this process will engage the entire faculty in a four-year period. In practice, given the vagaries of the collaborative process, the number of community and university people involved varied for a number of reasons. With the principal's strong leadership and backing for the collaboration, the number of teachers remained constant. At times, however, the number of community participants dropped to as low as two, as the pressures and crises of living in such a hard-pressed community made extraordinary demands on their time, such that they missed scheduled meetings or took part in workshops on an intermittent basis. The demands on university participants also took a toll on their numbers, especially when they found themselves in an unfamiliar and not always comfortable social terrain. In the summer workshops, a core group of teachers and community members met with university faculty and professionals from a variety of disciplines and fields to discuss issues of crucial concern for the school and community. Together, this core group developed a sense of common goals,objectives,andstrategies(includingbutnotlimitedto instructional strategies) for meeting student and community needs. In the academic year workshops, which are two-day workshops held every six or eight weeks, the core group met to continue their ongoing discussions about school and community concerns and to report on the success or failure of implemented strategies. In addition, the Urban School Field .Station, working with the Omega Boys Club of the East Bay and the West Oakland Mental Health Agency, has established regularly scheduled after-school sessions for students to discuss the Page 10 Underwood & Frye problems they face in their lives outside school and the difficulties they encounter in school. Although the framework was relatively straightforward, it was by no means easy to put it into practice. With small grants from the San Francisco Foundation and other funding sources, we were able to organize the first three-week summer workshop, and the follow-up school-year workshops in 1992. The focus was on how to work with hard-pressed urban middle-school youth in a way that would ensure boththeir own sense of self-worth and their cooperation and participationin a sustained educational agenda. Community and university participants, from their various perspectives, discussed the conditions in which these youth live. Especially important here was the community perspective presented by the director of the local Omega Boys Club. Working with some of the toughest of the school's youth, this community leader was able both to present the students' point of view and to provide a pragmatic view of interaction strategies that work well with these youth. The participating teachers and community members together reported on their experiences with these youth inside and outside the classroom. In this way, all the participants began to work out a mutually informed, commonly shared perspective on these issues. With university faculty and staff assisting with grant writing,we were also able to secure funding to hire instructional assistants from the university community, both to provide classroom support to teachers and to provide assistance external to the classroom. For example, the school site had seven Eritrean students who spoke little or no English and were failing their classes, mostly because of the language problem. Through the Field Station collaboration, the school was able to locate and hire an instructional assistant who was originally from Eritrea and taught school there. Under her supervision all the Eritrean students gradually became honor roll students. With somewhat less dramatic results, the collaboration also brought in a Latino instructional assistant, who has played a key role both inside and outside the classroom. For instance, in an after-school altercation between African American and Latino students, the latter, who were outnumbered, felt intimidated and stopped coming to school. The instructional assistant was able to intercede with the Latino students and draw them back to the classroom.

16 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 11

As the teachers at the school site began to see that the collaboration did not consume their already limited time but in fact brought them additional resources which facilitated their work, they became more willing to become increasingly engaged in the collaborative process. Similarly, as the community people involved began to see that their concerns were heard, they too became both morevocal and more active. It thus became possible for the various school, community, and university people involved increasingly to extend the focus of the collaboration beyond strictly educational concerns. In fact, as we had anticipated, many of the school's problems were not educational ones. In addition to such behavioral issues as violence and discipline, a variety of nutritional and other health issues affected the life of the school. In addition to the chronic problems that daily sap many students' energy and attentiveness, there were also frequent instances of acute medical conditions and emergency situations that threatened students' health and well-being and disrupted school life. To alleviate this persistent pattern, the collaboration was able to locate two pediatricians, who now make regular visits to the school and focus on health and nutritional problems. They do preventive work and help mediate between the school and local hospitals and health care centers. As a result, a community health center was willing to place an African American male social worker at the school, who now plays an important counseling and mentoring role for the students. The fact that this social worker spends many hours per week and has an office on the school campus, combined with the fact that he holds everything the students tell him instrict confidence, has made him a centrally important figure at the school. It also adds to the collaboration an additional voice expressing the concerns of the students. Although the social worker does not repeat what the children tell him, he can talk about the circumstances they face in both the school and the community and provides a fresh, empathetic perspective on which the collaboration can build its continuing activities.

1 7 Page 12 Underwood & Frye

Collaboration for urban school change necessarily entailsan ongoing, problematic process of struggle to address the needs and interests of all the players involved, an intricate socialprocess of inter- institutional, inter-departmental, and cross-disciplinary collaboration building. Because the school problems of urban youthare inevitably linked to social, nutritional, health-related, and other extra-educational factors in their lives, promoting their academic development necessarily entails the development of dynamic relationships between urban schools and the communities they serve. Given the economically precarious circumstances of urban communities and schools, it also involves access to human and technical resources from external institutionssuchascollegesanduniversities.Buildingthese relationships involves multiple strategies, focusedon the various problems and needs identified by community, school, and university people working together on a consistent basis. Such strategies bring together people from vastly different social worlds, all struggling fora sense of social recognition but doing so from vastly different systems of prestige and social honor, expressed in vastly different vocabularies of motive. Community-school-university collaboration thus establishesa triadic inter-institutional reciprocity in which professional and lay people pursuing their divergent ends as individuals from utterly different social universes may negotiate acommon frame of reference, a potentially shared universe of discourse, to developa comprehensive school agenda that frankly acknowledges the real social environment, the actual social world in all its positive and negativeaspects, in which the school's students have to construct their lives. Such collaborations, and the multifaceted tasks they are intended to address,are riddled with barriers and difficulties. Understanding inter-institutional collaboration as a social process enables us to approach more criticallyand carry out more productivelythe dynamics of bringing about school reform and of improving individual student achievement, in the broadercontext of the societal constraints inhibiting change and of the community resources that can support real change in building a future for contemporary urban youth.

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References

Blanc, C. S. et al. (1994). Urban children in distress: Global predicaments and innovative strategies. UNICEF: Gordon and Breach Publish- ers. Duster, T. et al. (1990). Making the future different: Report of the task force on black student eligibility. Oakland: University of California Office of the President. Edelman, M. W. (1987). Families in peril: An agenda for social change. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. Frye, H. T., Keller, E. J. et al. (1990). Models of community intervention for academic achievement among African-American youth in California, Volumes I and II. Oakland: University of California Office of the President. Frye, H. T. and Underwood, C.F. (1991). Schooling as a focus for African American community development. Paper presented at American Sociological Association meetings in Cincinnati, August. Harkavy, I. and Puckett, J.L. (1991). Toward effective university-public school partnerships: An analysis of a contemporary model. Teachers College Record 92(4), 556-581. Lea, V. (1993). Student and teacher voices: A study of race, gender and classonmiddleschooleducationalpractice.Unpublished manuscript. Mehan, H. (1992). Understanding inequality in schools: The contribution of interpretive studies. Sociology of Education 65 (January), 1-20. Oliver, M. L. (1988). The urban black community as network: Toward a social network perspective. Sociological Quarterly 29, 623-645. Reed, R. J., Spinetta, K.I., and Brach, C.I. (1990). Survey of schools of education in California colleges and universities. Report of the Task Force on Black Student Eligibility. Oakland: University of California Office of the President. Sassen, S. (1991). The global city: New York, London, Tokyo. Princeton: Princeton University Press. Simmel, G. (1950). The sociology of George Simmel. Glencoe, Ill.: The Free Press. Underwood, C. F. (1990). Black student eligibility: A review of the literature.Oaldand:Universityof CaliforniaOffice of the President. Page 14 Underwood & Frye

Underwood, C.F. and Frye, H.T. (Editors). (1992). Joining forces: Collaborative strategies for urban educational change. Oakland: University of California Office of the President. Wagner, J. (1992). The educational extension model. In Underwood, C. and Frye, H. (eds.), Joining forces: Collaborative strategies for urban educational change. Oakland: University of California Office of the President.

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MOBILIZING THE VILLAGE TO EDUCATE THE CHILD

Valerie Maholmes Yale University

Background

The theme of the Comer School Development Program is based on the African Proverb "It takes a whole village to educate the child." Founded on the principles of child development theory, the School Development Program puts forth the notion that children learn and develop when they are nurtured in an environment supported by a community of caring adults. Developed in 1968 in New Haven, Connecticut, the School Development Program began on the heels of the civil rights movementduring a time of unrest in urban centers, distrust of the establishment, and feelings of disenfranchisement and alienation. The schools targeted for intervention were among the poorest achieving in the community and had the highest incidence of dropout and truancy (Corner, 1980). The challenge at that time was to address students' needs by bringing together the three groups who had been at odds with one another, the school, the community, and the parents. Through the formation of the School Development Program and implementation of its three Mechanisms: The School Planning and Management Team, The Mental Health Team, The Parents' Program; its three Guiding Principles: Consensus Decision-Making, Collaboration, and No-Fault Problem-Solving; and Three Operations: The Comprehensive School Plan, Staff Development, and Assessment and Modification, those schools became among the highest achieving schoolsinthedistrict. Now, over 25 yearslater,the School Development Program continues to utilize these strategies to mobilize the village in support of the child. A newly developed school in a northeast urban center, for the purpose of this paper called the Nouveau School, adopted the principles and strategies of the Corner School Development Program to bring to fruition its vision to have a school which would serve as the hub of community activities, resources and

21 Page 16 Moho Imes support and which provides all students it serves with opportunities to learn to high standards. Assessing the Need to Mobilize the Village The need to mobilize the village was underscored by the demographic and socioeconomic characteristics of the community. The community isseverelyunder-servedwithhighpovertyand unemployment rates, prevalent homelessness, and inadequate health care. These socioeconomic conditions have severely impacted the schools and the students in this community. Academic achievement in these schools is below the minimum set by the state, and has continued to fall over the last few years (Jones, 1994). What was needed was a bold strategy which would capitalize on the strengths of the community and the willingness on the part of stakeholders and partners to work together to reclaim the community for the sake of its most precious commoditythe children. The School The Nouveau School, located in an urban community in a major northeastern city, was finally opened in September, 1992 to nearly 300 inner city students. The School aims to: nurturestudents'innate capacityto be energetic,self- disciplined learners and responsible members of the extended school community; ensure that academically diverse students realize their full potential and become educationally and socially prepared to complete their secondary and college education; create a school which requires, supports, and depends upon parental involvement; create a school where awareness and respect for cultural diversity is integrated into every aspect of the program; develop the School as a model with wide-spread application in all schools in its district. The Nouveau School is a unique public/private collaboration joining a charitable foundation, a public community school district and

22 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 17 a private non-profit organization. Now in its second year of operation, the school has implemented its originally envisioned components, providing for students a fullyintegrated,supportive educational community that, at its core, believes that all children can perform to high standards (Knowles, 1992). The Health Center provides on-site health and wellness services to children and families; the Family Center, a multi-service resource center, creates linkages between the home, community, and school; the Extended Day program augments academic instruction; and the Residential Campus provides year-round learning experiences for students and families. Identifying the Villagers The first step in mobilizing the village was to identify the various facets of the community that could readily address the school's most immediate needs. The partners and stakeholdersattheschool deliberated and focused on three major components of the community to support the school's educational program: (a) parents and families, (b) community resources, and (c) health service partners. Parents and Families The involvement of parents in the school can play a major role in the school change process and can create a desirable context for teaching and learning (Corner, 1986). Comer (1980) emphasized that the need for parental participation isgreatest in low-income and minority communities or wherever parents feel a sense of exclusion, low self-esteem and/or hopelessness. He asserted that parents are the first and most important models and teachers of their children. If parents feel excluded, of little value and hopeless, they will be likely to transmit these attitudesto their children. Such attitudes have behavioral consequences that are the opposite of what is necessary for good school learning or the achievement of long-range goals. The parent involvement component of the School Development Program was the major strategy used by the Nouveau School to mobilize parents. The component has three levels of involvement. The first and most basic level, general participation,is critical to the involvement of parents in other levels of participation. The goal here is

23 Page 18 Maholmes to engage and encourage as many parents as possible to attend activities involving their children. During this level of involvement, teachers and school staff are encouraged to provide parents with more "good" news about their children than "bad," to lessen the influence of some parents' memories of their own school failure. It is important to note that good news must be balanced with real concerns; however, positive interactions at this level enable the parents to view the school as a good place. To support involvement at this level, the Nouveau School received funding to develop a family center which would serve to direct and provide a focus for broad-based activities. The mission of the Center is to assist families in obtaining the skills and knowledge necessary to become effective participants in the educational process of these children and to improve the quality of life in the community. At the second level, parents participate in day-to-day classroom and school activities and join whatever parent organization exists. Although fewer parents are involved at this level it is the belief of the Corner Program staff that it is through parents participating at this level that the school becomes a part of a community. When parents develop a strong, positive attachment to the school then a positive attachment to students, to the staff and program of the school is more likely. This is particularly important in schools which serve a wide socio-economic and culturally diverse population of students. Parents with fewer mainstream social skills are often reluctant to become involved in schools even when they are invited to do so by school staff (Corner, 1980). However, other parents who have been actively involved serve as role models and advocates for reluctant parents thereby encouraging attendance and participation in school social activities. Activities at this level would involve spending time in the classrooms as aides or tutors, and also assisting with clerical tasks in the main office. The Nouveau School developed a strategy called "class parent representatives" to improve communication vehicles between the classroom and the home. The Representatives are assigned to a classroom and serve to: (a) act as a liaison between the classrooms and the School Planning and Management Team; (b) represent the parent body on the School Planning and Management Team; (c) assist in

24. FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 19 disseminating information about school programs and activities; (d) insure greater parent involvement in the planning and management of the school. The third level is the most sensitive and critical level of parent involvement (Corner and Haynes, 1991). A small group of parents are selected by their peers to represent them on the School Planning and Management Team whichincludesteachers,professionaland nonprofessional support staff and the principal. These parents also work withtheirconstituentsto developactivitiesinsupport of the Comprehensive School Plan. This enables all parents to feel ownership of the plan and its implementation, giving them a real stake in the outcome of school activities. Parent representatives urge other parents to become active participants and to help develop solutions to obstacles that limit their participation. Community Resources and Collaborations Epstein (1992) reported that collaboration and exchanges with the community involve the cooperation of any institution that shares some responsibility for children's development and success. At the Nouveau School the Family Center served as a major vehicle of collaboration with the community. A needs assessment was conducted by the director in conjunction with the parents to determine the nature and scope of the programs which would help accomplish the Family Center's goals and objectives. Based on the results from the assessments, the following programs were initiated during the fall of 1993: the teenage support program, holistic health/stress management, African Studies, Jump Aerobics, Parents' Club, Single Parent Support Group, Classroom Volunteer program, GED classes, and Saturday Basketball. Additional programs and

activities ,developed during theschool year included aninter- generational program with the local senior citizens' center, family computer training, partnership with Long Island University, round table discussions, and an external degree program. Partnerships with Business and Health Service Agencies A great deal of research is being conducted on the benefits of the integration of health services at the school site. By doing so, these

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services would be more accessible to families and children would immediately benefit from the availability of health care staff to provide primary and preventive health care. The Nouveau School identified this as a viable strategy to address the demographic and socio-economic needs in the community. The Health Center's overarching goal was to provide on-site health and wellness service to children and families. More specifically, the Center seeks to provide the following services: Comprehensive histories and physicals for all of the students and their families; Identification, management, and follow-up on acute and chronic illnesses as well as handicapping conditions of students and their families; Referrals to appropriate sub-specialists at the local Hospital Center to ensure that health care maintenance, including immunizations, hearing and vision screening are provided to students; Mentors for students, workshops for parents in prenatal care, nutrition, and preventive medicine and child-care as well as in- class support for teachers and students. Results from the year two survey revealed that approximately 245 referrals were made to the Health Center by parents (34), staff (96) and faculty (115) (some students were referred more than once). These referrals were made when students said they didn't feel well, for shots/immunization, colds/flu, to rest, for general checkups, or for other unspecified reasons. Most parents referred students to the Health Center for checkups. Most staff and teacher referrals were made when students said they didn't feel well or for colds, or for cuts/bruises. The Health Center served not only to provide primary care for children but students also referred themselves to the Center at times when they needed time away from their classrooms. In these instances nurses took the opportunity to teach and provide students with information about hygiene and personal care. A unique feature of the Health Center is the involvement of a developmental pediatrician who, during a twenty-hour week, performs

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developmental assessments with kindergarten and first grade students. The primary role of this pediatrician is to conduct evaluations, support teachers, and to observe and work with any children who are having developmental or behavioral difficulties. The pediatricianisalso available to families in the sense that if a family has a concern about a child's behavior or learning ability or some other pertinent issue affecting the child, the family can contact the pediatrician independently of the classroom teacher to discuss issues related to the child's development. Catalysts and Obstacles to Mobilizing the Village Any effort to bring together groups from various segments of the community is bound to encounter obstacles to moving forward program plans and goals. However, anticipating these obstacles and proactively developing strategies to diminish their impact can catalyze efforts to mobilize the community. Catalysts and obstacles were categorized under three major rubrics: a) relationship/trust issues, b) attitudinal infrastructure, and c) organization norms. Trust/Relationship Building The quality of interpersonal relationships in the school is often cited by teachers as an important dimension of the school environment (Lee, 1992). The relationships among teachers, administrators, students, and parents contribute to overall feelings of satisfactions, confidence, and beliefs that one can make a difference in a child's educational experience (Rosenholtz, 1988; Hargreaves, 1990). Epstein's (1992) research highlighted the importance of the relationship between the family and the school and pointed out the overlapping influences of both institutions on students' academic and personal development. This relationship is particularly essential in urban schools where many teachers and administrators do not live in the communities where the school is located and as a result may not fully understand or appreciate the realities of their students' lives, the cultural norms, and values (Nixon, 1993). At the Nouveau School, the most significant relationship to meld was the teacher-student relationship. This occurredearlyinthe development of the school and, as a result, served as a catalyst for more

2 Page 22 Maholmes parent involvement. Parents were more inclined to support academic programming they felt enhanced their children's academic development and they encouraged student participation in the widearray of school activities. What served as an obstacle however, was the interpersonal dynamic among some of the adult stakeholders. Although parents had the opportunity to participate in some decision-making activities, they quite often felt that they needed the opportunity to have input earlier in the process and that they needed to be informed of other decisions and activities in a timely manner. This was particularly true withrespect to the on-site health services. Parents felt that they had not been communicated with effectively and consequentlywere distrustful of the program during the initial stages of implementation: The school and the Hospital collaborated on having the clinic here...and there wasn't really an assessment of the community done to see what they felt they their needs were. And I think that they felt that this was sort of imposed on them. Because some of them said things to me like: "What does the hospital want with us?" And I think thatif they had an opportunity tofillout a questionnaire or a survey of some thing where they could let the powers-that-be know what they felt their needs were. (1994 interview with school nurse practitioners)

Attitudinal Infrastructure The attitudinalinfrastructure reflects educators'attitudes and beliefs about factors which contribute to studentsuccess. On the one hand, these beliefs may translate into a truncated,or watered down curriculum and classroom activities which fall short of challenging students' academic abilities. On the other hand, the earnest belief that all childrencanlearntohighstandardsdespitesocio-economic circumstances often results in the development of strategies and practices that motivated students to achieve at levels beyond which they are currently demonstrating proficiency. At the Nouveau School, the attitudinal infrastructure servedas a catalystfor mobilizing parents and community tosupport the

28 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 23 educational and psycho-social development of the students. The academic program reflected high expectations and belief in the students' capacity to learn and achieve. Students were provided with varied learning experiences including field trips, a summer residential program which extended the school year, and an extended day program which augmented the daily academic program. Students benefited significantly from this infrastructure. They surpassed the district average in attendance, and in reading and writing scores in the first year. Psycho-socially,students had adjusted well. They had high expectations of themselves as students and believed that they would be able to graduate high school, attend college, and get a good job. In addition, the students were happy and satisfied with their lives, reporting good relationships with friends, family members and teachers. This most significant of the early outcomes of the Nouveau School was students' positive achievement attributionsand behaviors. Students reported that they most often attribute their success to the amount of effort they expend as opposed to luck. They also indicated they ask for help and study harder if they do poorly on tests. This finding reflects the school's efforts to address student holistic educational needs and to prepare them for life after the Nouveau Schoolexperience. Organizational Norms Organizational norms of a school reflect "the way things are done here", that is, the political and organizational structure that often gives rise to the policies and practices characteristic in many schools. Examples may range from the scheduling of a school to the ways in which parents are involved in the school to the leadership style of the building administrator (Hixon, 1993). Since the Nouveau School was just opening its doors for the first time two years ago, its challenge was to develop a set of norms that all stakeholders would buy in to and honor. As a first step in this process, the school staff spent considerable time participating in the Yale Child StudyCenter Leadership DevelopmentInstitutetoobtainthe knowledge and skills necessary to implement the Prop-arn,Information and roundtable sessions were held for parents and other staff to ensure

29. Page 24 Maholmes that everyone was knowledgeable and felt comfortable with the implementation. As the philosophy of the School Development Program took hold in the school, the Planning and Management, Mental Health, and Parent Involvement Teams served as the major participation vehicles for stakeholders. The guiding principles of "No Fault", consensus, and collaboration were implemented to serve as catalysts for creating a climate of inclusion and cooperation among all concerned. An additional catalyst in establishing the organizationalnorms was the number of community representatives who volunteered in the school on a regular basis. Because of this, the Nouveau School was able to address some of its critical needs. Such programs as the advisor-advisee were established, the daily scheduled was revised to have 90-minute academic blocks, and teachers were able to plan togetheron grade-level teams. As a result, the school significantly increased its adult-student ratio further creating a caring and supportive school climate. Since this was a high-risk, high-visibility venture in the community, having policies and procedures for activities ranging from school visitations by potential funders to escorting and transporting children home after the extended day program was paramount. In some cases, the attemptto provide structure was perceived by a small group of parentsas an obstacle to participating freely in their children's education: I strongly believe it does take a whole village to educate a child and parents are a very important part of this. We had a history at this school when we had parents upset with us that we were very demanding. We still have those parents but I think it is up to the school to figure out how to work with those parents; how to get them to see that they are important; that we do want their input but there has to be rules and regulations. We all follow them. There can't be a free for-all. (1994 interview with the Nouveau School principal)

Summary

Attempts to address the specific and unique issues characteristic of the urban context have varied widely in their success. While it has been 30 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 25

documented that urban schools are characterized by poor academic performance, low attendance rates and increasing dropout rates, other issues such as attitudinal infrastructure, relationships, and organizational norms, add layers of complexity to the challenge of bringing about change in urban schools (Hixon, 1993). These issues need to be examined more closely as attempts are made to mobilize the village to work in urban schools.

Implications

The findings from this process documentation have implications for universities or agencies wishing to forge partnerships with urban schools: 1) First and foremost, there must be an identification process of the key stakeholders both within the school and the community. Once these stakeholders are identified, there must be participation structures to bring these groups together in an organized way. Parents must have meaningful opportunities for involvement and business and social service partners need structured vehicles, like those provided through the School Development Program, through which activities can be coordinated and integrated into the school's overall mission, goals and objectives. 2) The intended beneficiaries of the collaborative effort must have input. Community representatives must be able to express their needs and interest in supporting the partnership. This must be a genuine process, and stakeholders must be able to see evidence of their input. By doing so, trust in the process can be established early on, thus setting the stage for building cooperative and supportive relationships.

References.

Corner, J.P. (1980). School power: Implications of an intervention project. New York: The Free Press.

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Corner, J.P. (1986). Parent participation in the schools. Phi Delta Kappan. pp. 442-446. Corner, J.P., and Haynes, N.M. (1991) Parent involvement in schools: An ecological approach. The Elementary School Journal. 91, 3 pp. 271-277. Hargreaves, A. (1990). Individualism and individuality: Reinterpreting teacher culture. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association Boston, MA. Hixon, J (1993). Staff development and the urban school: The importance of context. Journal of Staff Development. (14),1 pp. 54-55. Jones, M. (1994). Proposal to implement systemic reform. Unpublished manuscript. Knowles, T. (1992). Decatur-Clearpool School concept paper. Unpublished manuscript. Lee, M., (1992). The organizational context of personal teaching efficacy. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educa- tional Research. Association. San Francisco, CA. Rosenholtz, S.J., (1989) Teachers workplace: The social organization of schools. New York: Longman Press.

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PATHWAYS TO TEACHING: AN URBAN TEACHER LICENSURE PROGRAM

Lucindia H. Chance Lana J. Smith Thomas A. Rakes Steve M. Ross Duane M. Giannangelo The University of Memphis

Urban schools, which historically have large numbers of low- income students, have specific needs that require specialized training for teachers.In urban districts,approximately one-half of beginning teachers leave teaching in the first five years and in other cases in the third or fourth year. Since it takes about three years to become competent in an urban classroom, urban schools are losing teachers at the point where they are becoming effective professionals (Haberman & Richards, 1990). In order to decrease the employment turnover and improve the quality of new teachers, the training of urban teachers must be analyzed and revised. Opportunities to gain access to the most generally useful knowledge are maldistributed in most schools, with poor and minority children and youths on the short end of the distribution. This is morally wrong.... it is intolerable for future teachers to remain ignorant and unconcerned. And so their professional education must ensure the necessary loss of innocence (Goodlad, 1990, p. 22). Colleges and universities, especially in urban areas, find themselves caught between the demands of school systems for more teachers trained and willing to work in inner city schools and the moral and ethical cries of professionals who doubt the quality of alternative licensure programs that are producing teachers specifically for urban settings. The demands and the conflicts are real and are resulting in actions of state legislators and other decision makers who are often outside the profession. Forty-two of the 50 states now have approved forms of alternative teacher certification. Educators can respond with a

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"Chicken Little" cry that "alternative licensure is coming, and it will ruin the profession," or they can become involved and identify program qualities necessary to insure strong teachers completing alternative licensure programs. The following discussion presents the details of one such program. The University of Memphis alternative licensure program, funded byDeWitt WallaceReader'sDigestFoundation,isapost- baccalaureate, urban.,teacher licensure program. The program is modeled afterthe Metropolitan Multicultural Teacher Education Program at the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee (Haberman, 1990). It is specifically designed to prepare elementary teachers to teach in an urban setting. LeMoyne-Owen College (LOC) and Memphis City Schools (MCS) are primary collaborators along with the University of Memphis (UM) in providing a comprehensive approach to preparing quality urban teachers. Three surrounding county school districts (Shelby, Tipton, and Haywood) also participate in the project on a limited basis. The program includes an assessment of more than a list of competencies and skills historically set forth as prerequisites for teacher success. Students holding licensure through this program possess skills necessary to positively address the academic needs of children in poverty, demonstrate effective use of strategies for a multicultural population, and demonstrate an understanding of the special needs of urban schools and the communities they serve. The success of the program can be directly tied to a four-phase process that includes selection, candidate preparation prior to program entry, involvement of K-8 practitioners in the training, and on-site mentoring during the internship year. The selection phase of the process is especially critical.

Phase I: Selection Process

Each year of the four-year project funding cycle, 20 candidates are selected from Memphis City Schools (17), Shelby County Schools (1), Tipton County Schools (1), and Haywood County Schools (1). Those selected hold a bachelor's degree and are employed as a substitute

34- FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 29 teacher in one of the participating school systems. At the beginning of the first year, a survey of all non-certified personnel within the four participating school systems yielded a pool of 553 interested candidates who met these two qualifications. This large pool was then narrowed based on recommendations from school administrators who had worked with these individuals. The remaining candidates were then further narrowed to the final pool based on the admissions/assessment criteria discussed below. Those ultimately admitted to the program were simultaneously hired as a teacher-of-record in one of the participating school districts and were admitted to the College of Education, University of Memphis, as a post-baccalaureate student. There are no university degree requirements related to the program. Teacher candidates may work toward a master's degree; however, their work in the licensure part of the program is all directed toward fulfilling initial teacher licensure and competence requirements. At the point of university admission, candidates must satisfy all of the following criteria: Pass the Miller's Analogy Test with a score of 40 or higher. The general knowledge portion of the NTE is required for evaluation of transcripts. Have a bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university with a minimum GPA of 2.5 which includes a major field of study other than, or in addition to, teacher education. Pass the Haberman Selection Interview. This procedure, which requires two interviewers and 35 minutes, has been found to predict success in urban teaching. Training was given to a cadre of classroom teachers and university personnel who work with this program to serve on two-person interview teams. A description of the Haberman Selection Interview may be obtained from the Houston Independent School District in Houston, Texas. Since admission is limited to 20 candidates per year, preference is given to: a) members of minority groups under represented in the teachingforce:African-Americanmales,whitemales,African-

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American females, and white females, b) more mature individuals with broad life and work experiences, c) those committed to serving the Memphis urban area for three years, d) individuals with special talents and abilities, and e) individuals with handicapping conditions who have the potential for classroom teaching. Allcandidates must demonstratetheirabilitytorelateto children/youth in multicultural situations prior to beginningas teachers in the fall. After preliminary screening, eligible candidates became "substitutes of choice" in designated Residence Schools during the spring semester prior to beginning course work in thesummer. This direct experience (prior to beginning teaching in the fall) not only is for educational purposes aimed at providing prospective candidates with teaching experience, but also serves as part of the initial screening process if for any reason an applicant passes the first four selection criteria but does not demonstrate the necessary predisposition and skills for directly relating to all types of children. Skills reflecting the potential of each candidate are evaluated through the process reflected in Table 1. FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 31

Table 1 Candidate Selection Process

Process Knowledge/Skill Referral by Residence School Pedagogical Skills Principal Ability to Interact With Students With Professionals With Parents Evaluation of Transcripts General Education Academic Preparation General Knowledge Portion of General Education NTE Academic Preparation Communication Skills Professional Knowledge Miller Analogies Test Problem Solving Skills Urban Teacher Selection Interview Predisposition Necessary to be Successful in Urban Settings Any weaknesses resulting from these evaluations are addressed in groupseminarsorindividuallythroughscheduledpreparatory programs, seminars, classes, or the professionaldevelopment seminars.

Phase Two: Program Preparation

Phase two occurs as initial preparation before candidates begin graduate course work. In the first year intensive tutoring sessions were developed to address the individual needs identified in the admissions and screening procedures. This proved to be an invaluable and necessary step in program participant success.Many of the candidates' deficiencies resulted not from lack of competence or intelligence but from the time gap between their formal education (undergraduate) and the screening process. The premise was that it is inappropriate to allow teachers to enter the classroom without the content knowledge necessary to be successful in their classrooms,and that it is perhaps unethical to allow candidates to proceed through a program with no assurance that once the program is complete,their general knowledge

3-I Page 32 Chance et al. skills would be insufficient to pass the National Teachers' Examination (NTE) required by the state of Tennessee tosecure a license. In some instances it was necessary for candidates to receive additional tutoring.

Phase Three: Graduate Course Work and Internship

The Pathways program involves preparing teachersforthe challenges they will encounter in urban classrooms. Theconcept is that of a learning cycle wherein the beginning teacher, through guided practice, observation, self-evaluation, and planning, is encouragedto succeed at increasing levels of competency. Theprogram ensures that entry level teachers (fellows) are engaged in current and appropriate modes of teaching under the direction and assistance of trained, experienced K-8 classroom and University mentors. Phase three of the program includes the uniquecourse work component of the program. The courses were developed basedon reviews of current literature and national school improvement studies, such as the Holmes Group and the Carnegie Forum, input from practicing urban teachers, urban teacher education consultants, and students who recently graduated from urban schools. Successful teachers, administrators and students froma variety of urban schools participated in seminar type meetings wherethey delineated the skills and abilities needed by teachers in today's urban schools. The instrument used for this project, Inventory of Urban Teaching Competencies, was developed by Etheridge and Hill (1992)to identify essential attributes of urban teachers. The resultswere then incorporated into the newly developed licensureprogram, Pathways to Teaching. Specialized Graduate Studies Project fellows participate in a summerprogram that includes graduate level course work in teaching methods, child development, learning theory, and practical applications involving theseareas. The coursework for the first cohort of studentswas completed during a period including June through August and represented both significant learning for the candidates and a final step in the screening/selection process. All candidates were required to demonstrate competency in

a 8: FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 33 knowledge and skills taught during the summer program to continue in the program during the fall semester. All classes consist of cohort members only and emphasize maximum participant interaction through discussion, videotaped micro- teaching, case studies, and speakers on contemporary issues. A concluding seminar during the spring semester is designed to provide a capstone experience in which candidates integrate theirexperiences learned in real life teaching situations. Individuals selected to teach the courses in the Pathways program havehad urbanteachingexperienceandareassignedclass responsibilities based upon their experiential backgrounds and areas of expertise. In addition, all instructors are required to have first-hand knowledge of Memphis city schools and their unique characteristics. Assignments of courses and instructors are made by the project directors. In most cases, courses are team-taught by at least one full-time U of M faculty member and one K-8 practitioner. The curriculum for the project differs from existing Masters of Arts in Teaching curricula in that the total number of semester hours was reduced and specific courses were modified as combinations of existing courses.Fellows continue to be enrolled as a cohort throughout the duration of their classroom studies. The Pathways program also prepares the fellows for out-of-class tasks related to the work of teachers including administrative duties, record keeping, self-development, peer relationships, and parent and community responsibilities. While this information is included as a part of the academic preparation, it is during the weekly seminars during the school year that much of the timely "professional coping" information is shared among interns. All costs for summer courses are supported by grant funding. This generally includes cost of faculty time, tuition, textbooks, and other expenses such as required testing for admission to the University. Fellows are expected to complete the program in one summer term of course work (10 weeks) and one academic year teaching internship. Those interns who show progress but develop more slowly may be retained as candidates for a second year of study. Considerations concerning continuation are made on an individual basis.

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The Internship Experience Phase three of the program also includesa full-year internship while the candidate serves as the teacher-of-record fora classroom. After the successful completion of universitysummer course work, candidates are recommended to the Tennessee State Department of Education for interim probationary licensure. These candidatesare then assigned to schools designated as Residence Schools. Preference is given to placement of candidates in these schools since principal recommendations for candidates originated from them. Residence School sites are chosen to provide a variety of settings that include culturally diverse populations, a desire to participate in the Pathways program, and demonstrated evidence of an effective instructional program. The fellows serve one academic year in the Residence Schoolsas teacher-of-record. Both a K-8 classroom teacher anda University mentor are assigned to each intern. Candidates learn to teach in their own classrooms and demonstrate teaching competencies under the guidance of trained mentors. The school mentorsare specially trained and compensated for their efforts. In support of this basic model, there are after school and/or weekend professional development seminars where common problems, as well as additional content and pedagogy, are covered. The university mentor plays a critical coordinating role during each professional semester. Weekly meetings, feedback sessions, after-school and weekend seminars are used to provide opportunities for continuing support and peer group interaction. The principal in each Residence School also plays a crucial role inall phases of the selection, development and evaluation of each intern. He/she coordinates the duties assigned to the candidates, assignsa mentor, and conducts a minimum of three evaluations based on the state teacher evaluation model. This evaluation is required since theyear serves as the intern's probationary year. During the internship year, each candidate fills the position ofa regular first-year teacher with full salary and benefits providedas a forgivable loan by the participating school systems. Each school district deducts from the candidate's salary the cost of the mentor stipend of 40 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 35

$500 and university tuition for fall and spring semesters. The remaining salary is paid to each fellow on a monthly basis. Interns are required to either repay the loan for their training or complete a minimum of three years teaching. The loan is forgiven at a rateof one-third for each year taught in an urban school or a school with high percentages of children in poverty. This fiscal plan allows for project continuation after funding ceases.

On-going Evaluation

A major component of the Pathways to Teaching program is a comprehensive evaluation to accomplish the following goals: (a) assess program effects on teacher candidates,schools, and the communities served; (b) determine the retention rate of program fellows in urban schools; (c) systematically examine the teacher preparation process to determine program modifications; and (d) examine the transferability of teaching skills developed through an urban licensure program to other urban or non-urban schools. In addressing Evaluation Goal 1, surveys were administered in the fall and springof the first year to course instructors and Pathways fellows. Results suggested that the university instructors were positive about the role of their courses in supporting the Pathways program. Nearly all agreed that the curriculum was strong in the experiences and the content it offered. However, lack of time was a consensual concern. The survey of fellows corroborated the generally positive reactions to the graduate level course work as well as the criticism that the presentations of instructors were sometimes too compacted and hurried. At this beginning stage of the program, however, the fellows were more reserved in reacting to the support they received in teaching and in gaining confidence in their abilities and skills. They indicated their most helpful sources of support were other teachers and classroom mentors. Recognizing that the survey was administered only a few weeks after the fellows started teaching, these results should not be surprising. In fact, they establish a reasonable baseline to which reactions expressed at the end of the school year can be compared.

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At the beginning of the spring semestera survey of seven principals and 15 classroom mentors was conducted. Thissurvey revealed identical results on seven items involving quality of the internsand university support. Both principals andmentors reported an overall average of 4.1 on a Likert scale ranging from a negative of one toa positive of five. Results from three additional items revealeda majority of mentors (87%) and principals (100%) wouldrequest their intern(s) remain in their school next year. When asked how Pathwaysfellows compared with other new teachers, 93% of thementors and 78% of the principals favored the Pathways fellows. In addition, 100%of the principals and 87% of the mentors indicated they would likeadditional interns during the next cycle. There isreason to expect that if the Pathways program will achieve its objectives of successfully providing mentoring, monitoring, and professional growth for the fellows,then differences favoring the end-of-yearresponses should be clearly evidenced.

Follow-up and Continuing Support

When a fellow is hired as a licensed teacher, s/he willcontinue to receive project support through the firstyear teacher mentoring program. This portion of the program assists each new teacher and the licensed teacher who serves as the mentor. Though unpaidduring the follow-up year, the mentor will receive both in-school andout-of-school support from the Pathways project. In-school support consists of conferences with mentor/mentee, observations, on-siteinstruction for mentee when needed, and other support requested bymentor. Workshops, seminars and other support sessionsare planned for the newly licensed teacher and his/her mentor. The Universitymentor can also provide additional content or pedagogicalsupport if needed by either the mentor or the newly licensed teacher. Thissupport will be as intensive as indicated by those requesting assistance.The goal is to gradually immerse each fellow into the professionalrole as an educational leader. The Pathways to Teaching alternative licensureprogram is a promising post-baccalaureate, urban teacher licensureprogram that FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 37 reflects a unique concept involving experienced substitute teachers as licensure candidates while targeting males and minority groups. At the end of this first year of operation, the initial 16 fellows remain enrolled in the cohort. As preparation for the second year begins, adjustments will be made based upon feedback and research results from this initial year.

References

Etheridge, C., & Hill, G. (1992, February). Practitioner judgments of teaching competencies necessary for successful teaching in urban schools. Paper presented at the meeting of the Association of Teacher Educators, Orlando, Florida. Goodlad, J. (1990). Teachers for our nation's schools. San Francisco: Jossey-B ass. Haberman, M., & Richards, W. (1990). Urban teachers who quit: Why they leave and what they do. Urban Education, 25, 297-303.

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POST-B.A. PARAPROFESSIONALS: PREPARATION FOR URBAN TEACHING

June A. Gordon Western Washington University Alice V. Houston Seattle Public Schools

Our topic is one found amid the rhetoric of many schools, colleges, and departments of education (SCDE)s across the country but about which little is being done: How to increase the number of teachers who are willing and able to work with students from diverse backgrounds in urban schools. While the demands are great nationwide for a teaching corps that meets the needs of today's students, few colleges or universities are seriously addressing the challenge (Haberman, 1989; Dupre, 1986). Part of the solution lies in the diversity of the teaching corpsof the nearly 41 million public school students, 33 percent are minorities, compared with 14 percent of the nation's 2.6 million public school teachers. As the experience reported here demonstrates, higher education can be slow and sparse in its response to this issue even when faced with a viable approach. The fact that so few programs have been developed to adequately prepare teachers for diversity, and that fewer have succeeded, might be an indication that such actions are perceived as an insurgency within the community that threatens established ways of teacher education. The question arises whether universities are, in reality, interested in preparing teachers so that they can teach all children effectively and equitably (Good lad, 1990; Ogbu, 1989). Thepost-baccalaureateparaprofessionalteacherpreparation program for K-8 certification that we will be discussing represented a challenge to both the school district and the university to move beyond the rhetoric of "a crisis in urban education" by responding to the reality that there are indeed educated people of color "in the pipeline" and that they want to become teachers. In this presentation we will delineate some preconditions for success and elaborate on how the program was conceptualized,developed,implemented, and funded, and how students, teachers and curriculum were selected. We will discuss some FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 39 difficulties encountered and how these problems could have been avoided. We conclude that the program could be replicated by other communities if there are true cooperation and collaboration between the school district and the university and something more than superficial commitment and resistance to innovation by the university partner. Context Seattle is a district in which all five of the SCDEs in the area produce but a handful of future teachers of color each year. Remember, this is in a school district where 58 percent of the 44,000 students are students of color. As diverse as the population is in Seattle, only 24 percent of the teachers in the Seattle Public School District (SPS) are of minorities and many are due for retirement. Most of the African American teachers have been with the district for over twenty years. They came not from the local community nor from the universities that surround the area but from the Southern U.S. In the 1970's a major recruitment effort attracted Black teachers from the South to Seattle. Many of these individuals have moved out of the classroom into administration. They are concerned that little effort has been exerted to bring in "their replacements." The days of going outside one's state to bring in teachers of color are over. It is imperative that we "home grow" our own. Colleges in the South and elsewhere are no longer allowing predominantly white states to take their teachers of color away. One of Seattle's teachers who came from a historically Black college claimed that when he arrived in Seattle in the 70's he was surprised to see that it not only had a Black community but several colleges with teacher education programs. He said, "Now I wondered way back then what I wonder about today, why don't the two of them get together? Why aren't there more minorities in these colleges of education?" His question underlies the thinking within which the current program under discussion evolved. There are a variety of reasons why students of color are not in the teaching profession. Ethnographic research in urban communities (Gordon, 1994) reveals that the main reason students of color are not selecting teaching as career is that they never get a chance to choose. The greatest impediment is negative K-12 experience whether as poor

4'5 Page 40 Gordon & Houston academic preparation, poor student discipline,or lack of encouragement by teacher, family or friend. For those who do make itto college, a host of mitigating forces awaits them, including socializationaway from service-oriented work. First generation college students often find navigating the waters of higher education overwhelming and seldom ask for help (Hughes, 1987; Loo & Rolison, 1986; Taylor, 1986). Nevertheless there are students who make it through. While the rhetoric of colleges of education claims that "Thereare not enough qualified people in the pipeline"; "A minority witha degree can get any job he or she wants"; "Teaching doesn'tpay enough"; or "Teaching isn't of interest to minorities"; surveys sent to paraprofessionals in Seattle etched a radically different picture. Not onlywere there students of color with bachelor degrees who had low paying jobs, but these jobs were in the field of teaching. The reason they chose to become an instructional aide was that they wanted to give back to their community and ultimately hoped to become teachers. One must wonder that if this is true of an isolated group of paraprofessionals, howmany more people of color with college degrees are out there working in minimumwage jobs who would love to become teachers? Perhaps the problem liesnot with students' of color interest in teaching but witha system that continues to create obstacles for students of color seekingto enter and succeed in colleges of education. History of the Program In 1991 a statewide initiative went out from the Educational Service District (ESD) advocating a staff developmentprogram for instructional aides. The purpose was toupgradetheirskillsinclassroom management. The Seattle School District had not been involved in the planning process and as a result the ESDprogram did not reflect the needs of urban paraprofessionals. A survey showed that, incontrast to most rural districts in the state, Seattle's instructional aides (I.A.)were very highly qualified. To even become an I.A. in the Seattle schools one must have an Associate's of Arts degree (A.A.) or 90 credits of college work; this is not true for other school districts. Many of Seattle's I.A.s not only had B.A.s but also Master's degrees. Some had been in the classroom as paraprofessionals for up to fifteenyears making them in

46 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 41 some ways more knowledgeable about teaching than the teachers whom they assisted. So why hadn't these paraprofessionals returned to school for their certification? In the survey most stated that they couldn't stop working to go back to school. Many were straddled with family responsibilities. Others had lost confidence in their ability to return to school after several years away. The labyrinth of the certification program on top of the requisite courses and GPA. to enter a traditional college of education mystified them. Nevertheless, in a discussion with union representatives for the I.A.s, we discovered that Seattle paraprofessionals wanted professional advancement. They did not want more in-service training that led nowhere; they wanted a program that would build toward certification. If they could find a program to accommodate their unique situations, they would return to school. Having discovered the quality of the I.A.s and their needs, the Seattle Public School District asked local colleges and universities to collaboratein providing a rigorous,clinicalteacher certification program for urban students who already had their B.A.s. Out of the five universities in the city only one, Seattle University, promised to do so; all the rest declined. In the end, Seattle University reneged on its promise. Without university collaboration the program could not go through. The superintendent then suggested that we try Western Washington University (WWU), his Alma Mater. While WWU is located 100 miles North of Seattle in rural Bellingham, it does have a small urban campus in Seattle. In 1992 WWU's urban campus representative came to a Seattle Public School (SPS) meeting ostensibly to discuss collaboration and began advocating for a four-year paraprofessional program that WWU had tried to start in Seattle the previous year. SPS people were dismayed. While the WWU program claimed to be focused on "candidates who are 1) currently instructional aides and, 2) are from linguistically and ethnically under-represented populations," WWU made the common mistake of most traditional colleges of education in providing little, if any, understanding of the students involved. The WWU program was developed for students with A.A.s. It would take 13-14 quarters (approximately four years of part time study, including BEST COPY Ci AMULk4 Page 42 Gordon & Houston summers for full time study) to complete the coursework. This was in addition to students working during the day as instructional aides in the schools. Students would pay their own way; tuition was not waived. While such a program would be harsh enough for a traditional student starting in their freshman year, the candidates for this program were to already have spent at least two years in college acquiring their AA. The district decided that since there was such a large group of paraprofessionals who had B.A.s, the greatest return could be made in the shortest amount of time with them. The district told WWU that it would put the district's resources in an abbreviated program for those with B.A.s. WWU was not happy with the decision. A long and painful process of negotiation ensued. Finally with the support of the district and the union, the post-baccalaureate program became part of the district contract and strategic plan. We might add that the K-8 certification program for students with B.A.s is not the only paraprofessional program offered within the Seattle School District. Seeing the desire for many paraprofessionals without B.A.s to advance professionally, SPS developed a variety of programs to accommodate their needs. These include a Bilingual Education Program, an Early Childhood Education Program, and a Secondary Education Program. A total of approximately eighty students participates at any one time. The Post-B.A. Program Thepost-baccalaureateparaprofessionalteacherpreparation program for K-8 certification under discussion here was designed to increase the number of teachers of color and bilingual teachers in the Seattle public schools. This is, however, a program of great diversity, not limited to American minorities. The first cohort was truly multicultural with students from Vietnam, Cambodia, Peru, China, Philippines, and Eritrea (Ethiopia), and African Americans and European Americans. Two-thirds were students of color and one third did not have English as their first language. Two students identified themselves as homosexual (a male and female). One woman was hearing impaired. Religious diversity was great and, for some students,

48. FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 43 far more significant than the issue of race. The average age of this non- traditional cohort was 38 years; more than half were male. Recruitment was the result of a survey to all paraprofessionals. Students who had their B.A.s and were interested in becoming teachers went through an intensive screening process. Students were scrutinized for their commitment to working with inner city youth. Each was given the Gallop Teacher Perceiver Interview that measures the likelihood that an individual will be a good urban educator. Besides three letters of recommendation, one that had to come from their immediate supervisor, students wrote a letter of intent and were interviewed by a group of educators who work with urban youth. This was not an easy process, particularly for the international students and for those who had been out of school for a decade or two. There were over 100 applicants in the first pool from which the 29 were selected. Coursework was condensed into one year (four quarters) with the third quarter dedicated to student teaching in a school other than the one in which they held their instructional aide position. During the academic year, they took three to four courses each quarter in the evening while working in their paraprofessional jobs during the day. This was beyond family obligations, which for some were very heavy. They were highly encouraged not to take on "side-jobs"; nevertheless, a few did due to economic necessity. For their last quarter they resumed full-time study with courses focusing on reflection, critique, and review. (See Table 1)

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Table 1 Program Structure

Session Course Credits Title Fall Math 281 4 Math for K-12 Teachers Psyc 351 4 Human learning/cognition Edaf 416 2 Persistent problems/Ed.1 Edci 394a 1 Elementary practicum Win Edci 497a 5 Methods/integrated curr.I Edci 497b 5 Methods/integrated curr. II Edci 394a 1 Practicum Spr Edci 429 3 Classroom management Edci 494 12 Internship Sum Ec 363 4 Exceptional Children Sum Psyc 352 4 Child development Edaf 416b 3 Persistent Problems II Edci 497c 4 Methods/integrated curr. DI

The program cost over $250,000 for the first cohort, of which $125,000 went to WWU. Part of the remaining money paid for the students' substitute time, books, and fees. In exchange, studentsare expected to teach in the Seattle School District for four years. If this contract is broken, the student will be required to pay back their portion of the cost. Instructors came from the public schools, the university, and the district (people who had been teachers but are now administrators). The goal of the program was to have a diverse group of teachers teachinga diverse group of students. The problems related to the university sharing power with public school teachers in a teacher certification program will be discussed in the next section. Student placement was to be in urban classrooms in the home districts of the students. Eighteen out of the original 29 students in the first cohort graduated August 1994. Out of those who did not graduate during the prescribed period, only one left the program, a Mexican Indian male of 54 yeArs_ of age. Another male of African American '0 0 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 45

descent felt he had to fulfill his commitment to the military. Six students did not graduate on time due to failing an Algebra test; two others had difficulty with their student teaching. The Problems The implementation of this program has been fraught with resistance both from the university and from the students. University representatives, except a few individuals, have done everything in their power to thwart the effort while also using the program as abanner for demonstrating their "quota" of involvement in urban schools. Where sanctions and reviews had never occurred before for off- campus programs, the paraprofessional program came underintense scrutiny. Suddenly every teacher in the program had to have a Ph.D., whereas for other university programs held off campus, even graduate level courses, a Master's degree was acceptable. What was not stated was that people who had connections with the university wouldbe allowed to teach without Ph.Ds. There was an "inside track" that kept some people out. Cries went out that we were watering downthe curriculum. WWU claimed that the district's requirements of graduation were lower than the university's; in fact, the opposite was true.When WWU suggested that students could pass a course by taking an equivalency test or correspondence course, SPS responded that they were interested in the students knowing the material not just passing a test. While the students had already been screened extensively before acceptance to the program, university representatives still saw the need to maintain a bell-shaped curve when grading. In other words, one third of the students would be expected to fail. This was not the goal of the SPS. The contrast in philosophy brought the respective parties from the schools and the university into heated conflict on numerous occasions. One of the clearest examples of the screening process had to do with the Algebra requirement. Out of all of the applicants, only one fourth had had Algebra and of these most had been out of college for ten to fifteen years. The students understood that they would receive Algebra as part of the program, hence clearing away this road block. While this was in part true, several students failed the competency test 51 Page 46 Gordon & Houston although they claimed to understand the material in class. SPS and the students came to perceive the math requirement as a "built in weed-out system." Their argument was that this was an elementary education program; these students would not be teaching Algebra. What they needed was a course in elementary math. The SPS director summarized these feelings stating, "The important thing was not if you can work with children, but rather if you can climb up this rope and swing over this building." The reality that many of these students were tracked out of college prep courses and allowed through the system without mathematical competency is reflected in student self-portraits obtained by Gordon, one of their professors. Two portraits speak directly to this point. Both students, while of African descent, were raised in radically different parts of North America. Carol is Canadian and Medgar is from Mississippi; both went to private Catholic schools. Medgar commented: Just like most other black parents who loved their children and wanted to see their children do better than they did, my parents attempted to provide me with the best education they could.

While theyreceivedaqualitymiddleclasseducationin predominantly white schools, once they moved onto high school they were tracked into remedial math and science while their classmates went into college prep. Medgar: I knew there was something wrong because math had been one of my strongest subjects. At the time I never pressed the issue because I didn't really know what was going on and the real value of education was foreign to me. Carol did not fare as well; she dropped out in her senior year: I didn't put much thought into being different until the ninth grade when someone had to tell me I was 'a raisin in a sack of flour.' My ideas and motives changed with this realization and soon I became invisible, indifferent where education was concerned. The nuns directed my education and shaped my goals.

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Reflections Over the past year we learned to trust each other and providefor each other even when others discounted and attempted tosabotage our efforts. We learned that there need to be more peoplein higher education who are willing to take risks and advocate forimproved education for all kids. We learned that racism is ever present butthat people with integrity come in all faiths, colors, and backgrounds.We learned that change isn't easy and that it is usually left up to one or two people to spearhead the effort. We learned that if we are to prepare future teachers to work effectively in urban schools, we mustfind people who share common values and are willing to createpathways through the bureaucracy and beyond rhetoric. In order for a program like this to work, there needs to be a committed core of people (Vaz, 1987). In the SPSIWWU scenario there were only a few; there needed to be more.The emotional and personal drain on a few individuals caring for the concerns of eightystruggling paraprofessionals in the four different programs as they attempt their reentry into higher education is awesome. Universityfaculty members must see how they contribute to the problem when theydisconnect from the real lives of their students and the communities that they comefrom (Tripp,1986).Facultyare needed who can dealwithurban communities. This program demonstrates what can be done to address the need for more teachers of color and bilingual teachers inurban classrooms and exposes many difficulties within school/university collaboration. Perhaps the question we are left with is how do you institutionalize social consciousness and awareness in people who perceive themselves untouched by urban schools?

References

Dupre, B. B. (1986). Problems regarding the survival of future black teachers in education. Journal of Negro Education, 55, 56-66. Goodlad, J.I. (1990). Teachers for our nation's schools. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Gordon, J. A. (1994) Why students of color are not entering the fieldof teaching: Reflections from minority teachers. Journal of Teacher Education, 45(5), 346-353.

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Haberman, M. (1989). More minority teachers. Phi Delta Kappan, 70 (10), 771-776. Hughes, M. S. (1987). Black students' participation in higher education. Journal of College Student Personnel, 28, 532-545. Loo, C.M., & Rolison, G. (1986). Alienation of ethnic minority studentsat a predominantly white university. Journal of Higher Education, 57, 58-77. Ogbu, J. U. (1989). The individual in collective adaptation: A framework for focusing on academic underperformance and droppingout among involuntary minorities. In L. Weiss, E. Farrar, and H. Petrie (eds.), Dropouts from school: Issues, dilemmas, and solutions (pp. 181-204). Albany, NY: SUNY Press. Taylor, C. A. (1986). Black students on predominantly white college campuses in the 1980's. Journal of College Student Personnel, 27, 196-202. Tripp, L. (1986). From working class to middle class: Ideology and socialization. Negro Educational Review, 37, 144-153. Vaz, K. (1987). Building retention systems for talented minority students attending white universities. Negro Educational Review, 38, 23-29.

5.4 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 49

TRAINING TEACHERS TO ADDRESS THE QUESTION: ARE URBAN STUDENTS DIFFERENT?

Judith W. Simpson State University of New York College at Buffalo

Introduction

In the 1980's, America's urban schools became the subject of controversy and the object of reform efforts that continue today. Clearly the comprehensive high school, as it had been known for over fifty years, had become dysfunctional by former academic standards. Excellence and equality became curriculum buzzwords and keeping children in school and graduating them with an acceptable degree of literacy became goals. Urban students were characteristically thought of as victims of poverty, racial discrimination and, by some, as asocial anathema. Authors such as W.J. Wilson (1987), C.M. Payne (1984), and Colin Ward (1990), portrayed urban students as receivers of an education structured on a curriculum of "deficiency programs". In much of the literature, testimony by urban teachers clearly revealed their confusion as to how to handle the constantly changing student populations. "Blaming the victim" (Wilson, 1987) became practice because there was no effort to retrain teachers to learn new instructional strategies that addressed the needs of their students. Jonathan Kozol's 1992 book, Savage inequalities, pointed out that in many American city schools there are curricula inequities, poor physical plants, tired and confused faculty, and youth that are disengaged in learning. Generally teachers and students come from verydifferent socioeconomic, ethnic and political worlds. Communities surrounding urban schools are foreign to the faculty and vice versa. Deyoung (1989) warned of the danger of ignoring this phenomenon, stating: ...since students and teachers frequently come from differentsocialandorethnicorigins,student performance and behaviors are typically attributed to individual cognitive and/or motivational differences,

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rather than to those which are the result of differences in the "lived culture" of students outside the school. (p.158) We have witnessed a struggle to reform urban education for almost two decades. Site-based management, quality control and other such business models have been tried in urban schools with little success. Efforts to involve parents have met with minimal success because educators took a tolerant approach rather than a cooperative one and a few, not the majority of parents, became active participants in school reform. Most of the reform movements have failed to acknowledge that students are humans, not products; that students have idiosyncrasies that prevent any one method of teaching or any one management model from being a panacea; and that schools reflect the socioeconomic and political tenor of the community, not just the attitudes of its children. The training of future urban teachers is critical to the success of reform. This paper will address three key issues that are critical in the training of urban teachers. Those issues are: uncovering hidden biases in order to accept learner differences; examining myths about instructional methods and looking at learning styles; providing opportunities for pre-service teachers to gain experience with urban children in order to understand appropriate planning that addresses the question: "Are urban students different ?"

Addressing the Issues

Uncovering biases The "lived culture" of our urban students is an area with which many of us are unfamiliar. Short of what we may see or read in the media, we have little knowledge of the customs, mores or environments of people different than ourselves. Teachers-in-training are particularly overwhelmed by their lack of understanding of people from other social or ethnic origins. Although pre-service teachers claim to be accepting of others, they are intimidated by unfamiliar behaviors, language, and other superficial characteristics they may observe in many urban students.

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Most novice or veteran teachers, if queried, would not admit that they had biases for or against any group of children. Neitherwould some teachers be aware that biases aregenerally a result of assigning stereotypicalattributesandcharacteristicstostudentswhose backgrounds are different than their own. As an art education professor, I searched for a way of allowing my own students todiscover the pitfalls in classifying anything, people or objects, based on generalities: Jacqueline Fernandez, a middle school art teacher in Buffalo,New York, shared a method for detecting student bias through the useof art images during a presentation in an art education graduate seminar at SUNY College at Buffalo. Since my students are all accustomed to using compositional elements and principles as tools to determine classifications ofartwork, I constructed an exercise that would capitalize on that abilityin order to categorize each of ten images. Without telling them anything more than to select which style they thought bestdescribed each image, the students were shown slides. The choice of styles were: (a)Classical European, (b) Mexican, Modem-American, (d) African, (e) African American, (f) American Regional, (g) Modern-European. Out of a sample of 24 students, only one admitted to having any prior knowledge of any of the images. Therefore, most of the selections weremade without contextualinformation and werereliant upon obvious compositional characteristics. The objective of the exercise was not to test students' knowledge of types of images andtheir origins, but to provoke them to operate strictly from a base of surface knowledge. Sixteen of the students identified Self portrait with pipe, 1937by William H. Johnson as having been painted by an African American. Four people thought at least two of the ten images were createdby African Americans and one person thought none of the works couldbe attributed to African Americans. In fact, every image shown tothem had been created by an African American artist,. We discussed how they had arrived at their decisions. The students had all classified the works according to stylistic, visualqualities or attributes they had learned through previous art history study.All students admitted they had relied on surface information tomake their selections. Although this exercise was chicanery of a sort, itsimpact

BEST Copy AVAILABLE 5:7 Page 52 Simpson emphasized my point that general knowledge aboutanyone or anything does not equate with understanding thatperson or thing. Nor, for that matter, are generalities always accurate. In conjunction withour class discussion about teacher expectations, assessment and evaluation of urban students, the metaphoric exercise demonstrated how lack oftrue understanding produces biases and preventsus from acting positively with varied populations in our classrooms. The exercise also afforded the students an opportunity to think about the impact of subconscious bias that may result from stereotypical information gathered from sources other than their own direct experiences. Myths about methods In a recent article in the Harvard Educational Review, Lilia Bartholome (1994) discussed the pedagogical assumptions frequently made by pre-service teachers. Primarily, she addressed thecommon belief that specific methodologies exist thatassure teacher and student success in any setting. Education students seek "the method" to deal with the problems of urban student populations they donot understand. Often novice and pre-service teachers believe mastery ofa specific strategy will ensure success with African-American children and another single methodology will work with another minoritygroup. Unfortunately there are many teachers in practice who also seek "the method" as the answer to their daily classroom dilemmas. Many ofthe erroneous assumptions regarding methodology are a direct result of failure to recognize the heterogeneity of school populations andneglect for the need to consider diversity when making curriculumand instruction decisions. Bartholome (1994) cautions thatwe need to, " shift from a narrow and mechanistic view of instructionto one that is broader in scope and takes into consideration the sociohistoricaland political dimensions of education" (p.176). Her message probes the center of the problem of teacher training. In order for any students to learn we must consider the variedways in which people learn. Learning styles Through the research of people like Howard Gardner (1989,1991), Robert Sternberg (1985), Caine and Caine (1991) and others,we know

'58 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 53 that people learn in multiple ways. Traditional instructional strategies such as lecturing are learner passive. Such strategies do not require students to investigate, think critically, or to do hands-on learning. Traditional strategies seldom work in urban areas. Many ethnic groups have been identified as "field-dependent" (Ramirez & Castenada, 1974) learners or those who are not best taught by linear means. Many schools are still locked into the step by step, linear method of teaching. Global or "field-dependent" learners need to be introduced to new information in exactly the opposite way. They must first see the big picture and deconstruct itto find the meaning. Research reported by Janice Hale-Benson (1986) suggests that black children "do not perform well when they are expected to learn independently...they have a need for interaction with the teacher" (p.68). Additionally Benson states, "studies have found black children to be more feeling-oriented, people-oriented and more proficient at nonverbal communication than white children" (p.69). Ignoring information such as this is potentially destructive to urban education. If we know the learner, the conditions in which s/he learns best and strategies for effectuating that learning, then we should be able to construct environments in which learning takes place. Providing opportunities to know the learner How do we ensure that education students gain direct experience in urban schools and begin to know the learner? I believe higher educational institutions have a responsibility to train teachers to work successfully in all school settings. Placing student teachers in unfamiliar schools, telling them to be aware of student differences, and talking about intervention techniques is not enough. One does not learn best from hearingaboutor simplyobserving classroombehaviors. Therefore,Ibelieveprovidingearlyopportunitiesforour undergraduates to work in urban schools as pre-service teachers, teacher assistants and action researchers is very beneficial for several reasons. The first reason isthat teachers-in-training who arrive at an unfamiliar school are dependent on the views of the cooperating teacher as their primary source of information about the nature of the students. Fear of the unknown often induces pre-service teachers to adopt a set of values and beliefs about their students that may or may not be accurate.

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I have gone into urban schools as a student teacher supervisor and found pre-service teachers doing nothing that even resembled what they had been trained to do. When questioned as to why they appeared to have forgotten everything they had studied about teaching, often the answer would be, "Mr. or Ms. X says, you can't do that with these kids". Intimidation caused by not having prior experiences that could serve as one's own judgmental base often precludes pre-service students from teaching and reduces their presence in the classroom to maintainers of discipline. Pre-service people leave practice situations where fear and inexperience are dominant with as shallow an understanding of urban students as they had when they began. They know that urban children may be "different" but they never really find out how or why. Secondly, there is the issue of expectation levels for urban student achievement. As was mentioned in the previous paragraph, it is all too common to hear words like "they can't do that". Without having tested that notion, student teachers are very prone to accepting the idea that urban students have inferior capabilities. Having pre-service teachers begin working in urban schools one day a week, for many consecutive weeks before they student teach, allows them to find out for themselves what students can do. Not having the experience of being responsible for six lessons a day allows teacher trainees to be innovative, to retain a level of idealism, to experience student successes and failures, and, to learn what is appropriate planning for urban learners. Lastly, while pre-service students are experiencing the urban classroom, education professors can share information weekly as to how to identify various learning styles and patterns of behavior that influence instruction and behavior. Learning while doing strengthens pre-service teachers' knowledge about the nature of urban children. In a sense, mini-investigations are taking place. The results of those investigations are shared in class discussions within the cohort of education majors; conclusions and statements based on participant observations are able to be challenged in terms of assumption or fact; the effectiveness of several different methodologies are able to be examined; and learning about instructional strategies takes on new meaning.

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Appropriate instructional choices for urban art education Each discipline has a content framework and a set of concepts that must be addressed before instructional choices can be made. Visual art, by its very nature, addresses the needs of the active learner. There are many reasons beyond "hands on" involvement that must be considered in order for teachers-in-training to be successful in urban classrooms. In pre-service art education classes, one way we approach the notion that we can help all children fmd meaning in our discipline is through talking about images and objects. We begin, as teachers, by thinking about art as a human behavior (Dissanayake, 1988). Art is found wherever there is, or has been, evidence of human habitation. The functional, aesthetic, or expressive complexity of art forms' direct relationship to any society's needs can easily be seen. There are direct connections between art and education; both are dependent on sociohistorical, socioeconomic and political constraints to determine their development. Once aware that education, likeart,is not a phenomenon that exists independently from therest of society, pre-service teachers can begin to think about how art education fits into the overall intellectual growth of urban children. Providing pre-service teachers with the opportunity to study the "lived culture" of inner city children, to experience urban students learning styles, to assess skill levels and the knowledge base about art, allows them to more effectively plan ways to connect the world of the student to the world of art. Thematic units that deal with the way artists have portrayed urban life; the way cities in different cultures are constructed; the way urban people celebrate their similarities and differences; the way film, video and music often reflect the rhythms of the city ; all might be viewed as appropriate content for bringing inside and outside worlds together. Beginning with concepts and devising strategies through which to teach them is much easier if pre-service teachers know their students. Engaged in learning about public school students through weekly contact, teachers-in-training can see that they must use specific strategies. For example, with global learners they must produce a finished product first and then explain how it was constructed. There must be consideration for constant verbal interaction between teacher .61 Page 56 Simpson and students and between student groups. Teachers-in-training may see that repetition of concepts is valuable through consistent reinforcement, that student involvement is better when instructions are repeated. Both urban teachers-in-training and urban students benefit significantly from sound planning and the use of appropriate instructional methodologies.

Conclusion

There are several conclusions we can draw from research and our experiences. Knowing who our public school students are and planning with their needs in mind is one factor that is critical to the success of urban teaching. We also know that curriculum that is exciting for students minimizes the need for maintaining order in the classroom. Due to the idiosyncratic nature of learners, if the same strategy is used in different settings, it is likely that it will produce different results. We mightsafelyassumethatmethodology must beflexibleand instructional strategies must be chosen to reflect a sensitivity toward the learners. The message is clear: if we value teacher's desires to be effective we must help them to achieve that. We must provide every opportunity possible for our teachers-in-training to succeed in urban areas, not to run from them. We need to help teachers see the validity in change, not to fear it. We must share a variety of viewpoints, conceptual choices and instructional strategies with our students and allow them to know about the learner and learning situations in urban settings through experience. Consideration for all of these factors could lead toward success. If, on the other hand, we persist in casting educational molds that are steeped in traditional teacher training methods and attempt to modify learners to fit into them, we will fail. Are urban students different? No. They are humans who desire to grow, to learn, to be nurtured and understood, and to be productive in society. Do they have different needs and manifest different traits than rural or suburban students? The answer to that question is often a resounding yes. Urban students bring their own sets of diverse experiences to school with them. Those experiences may be of a much more heterogeneous nature than one fords in schools outside the city.

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Constructing environments in which urban students can find meaning is not giving in, "dumbing down" or becoming "laissez faire". It is being responsible for creating climates in which learning leads to knowing and knowing leads to understanding. In our present global society, all societal institutions need to work together and all academic disciplines at all levels of education need to strive toward helping our urban youth to connect ideas and information. Teaching our children how to perceive, analyze, select and organize information is something we need to help our pre-service and post-service art educators learn how to do. We also need to train teachers to connect and transfer perceptual and critical thinking skills throughout the curriculum. In the interest of having schools be places where all children can learn, we need to think about how people come to know and understand each other; how we influence the way young people view and function in society; how we can help children to learn more about their personal worlds and to value themselves. Then we will be positively addressing the question: "Are urban students different"? The following statement from Habits of the heart (Bellah et al, 1985), is the essence of the philosophy I believe should underpin the training of 21' century urban educators: If our high culture could begin to talk about nature and history, space and time, in ways that did not disaggregate them into fragments, it might be possible for us to find connections and analogies with the older ways in which human life was made meaningful. This would not result in a neotraditionalism that would return us to the past. Rather, it might lead to recovery of a genuine tradition, one thatisalways self-revising and ina state of development. It might help us find again the coherence we have almost lost. (p.283)

63 Page 58 Simpson

References

Bartholome, L. (1994). Beyond the methods fetish: Toward a humanizing pedagogy. Harvard Educational Review, 64 (2), 173-192. Bellah, R.N., Madsen, R., Sullivan, W. M., Swidler, A., Tipton, S.M. (1985). Habits of the heart: Individualism and commitment in American life. New York: Harper. Caine, R.N. & Caine, G. (1991). Making connections: Teaching and the human brain. Alexandria, VA: Association of Supervision and Curriculum Development. De Young, A.J. (1984). Economics and American education: A historical and critical overview of the impact of economic theories of schooling in the United States. New York, NY: Longman Press. Dissanayake,E. (1988). What isart for? Seattle, WA: University of Washington Press. Gardner, H. (1983). Frames of mind. New York, NY: Basic Books. Gardner, H. (1991). The unschooled mind: How children think and how schools should teach. New York, NY: Basic Books. Hale-Benson, J.E. (1986). Black children: Their roots, culture and learning styles. Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press. Kozol, J. (1992). Savage inequalities: Children in America's schools. New York, NY: Harper Perennial. Payne, C.M. (1984). Getting what we ask for: The ambiguity of success and failure in urban education. Westport, CT: Greenwood. Ramirez, M. III, Castenada, A. (1974). Cultural democracy, bicognitive development, and education. New York, NY: Academic Press. Sleeter,C.E. & Grant, C.A.(1986).Aftertheschoolbellrings. Philadelphia, PA: Falmer Press. Steinberg, R.J. (1985). Beyond IO: A triarchic theory of intelligence. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. Ward, C. (1990). The child in the city. London, UK: Bedford Square Press. Wilson, W.J. (1987). The truly disadvantaged: The inner city, the underclass and public policy. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.

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THE RELATIONAL ASPECTS OF SCHOOL, FAMILY, & AT-RISK STUDENT SELF-ESTEEM: A QUALITATIVE STUDY

Christee L. Jen link Tulsa Public Schools

Introduction

Of the 40 million school-aged children in the United States, one- third are labeled "at-risk". Sartain (1990) defines at-risk students as: Children of school age who, because of one or more factorsinasyndromeof disadvantageoustraits, behaviors, and circumstances, are in danger of being unsuccessful in schools and/or in danger of becoming enmeshed in personally debilitating social, emotional, physical, or economic difficulties currently or in the near future (p. 6). Studies have shown that, in comparison to others, at-risk students have lower self-concepts and feelings of self-worth (Sartain, 1990). A negative self-concept carried into the educational environment can lead to unproductive, negative learning situations (Fine, 1967; Shuler, 1991). Today's schools are charged with the responsibility of providing strategies aimed at preventing learning discouragement and defeat, for when a student experiences success and is able to acknowledge that success, self-esteem is enhanced (Conrath, 1988; Duerkson & Darrow, 1991).

Method

Statement of the Problem McPartland and Slavin (1990) found: For many students school failure and personal problems are a part of a general syndrome of low self-esteem and Page 60 Jen link

poor general coping skills where one negative event in or out of school leads to others (p. 19). Samuels (1977) stated, "Children who do not feel completely adequate because of experiences at home can be helped to have success experiences at school" (p. 175). Purpose of the Study The purpose of the study was to examine the relational aspects of a school, family, and at-risk student self-esteem. The study included a thorough examination of the role that participation in a select musical group had on the self-esteem of the members in the group. Research Questions 1) What are the characteristics of the familial environments of the students at this school? 2) What role do these characteristics play in the self-esteem of the students in this school? 3) How do the interrelationships of school, a particular music program, families, and community influence the self-esteem of students? Procedures The school in the study had a high number of at-risk students as defined by Sartain (1990) including sixteen students who comprised the purposive sample. As a participant/observer I was both the researcher and the music teacher in the school in which the study was conducted. Any inherent bias I had as a participant in the study was a part of the naturalistic paradigm that added to the holistic description. The holistic investigation was conducted in the school year 1992-93 and encompassed the following: observations of the students and the entire school setting; interviews with parents, teachers, students, the school principal, an assistant superintendent, and a counselor at a subsidized housing project; analysis of student journals and journals of two outside observers who were teachers in the school; analysis of

65 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 61 technical literature and demographic information. Allinterviews were conducted by myself using a semi-structured format. Varying degrees of analysis of the data were ongoingthroughout the study. However, the constant comparison method(Glasser & Strauss, 1967; Strauss, 1981; Strauss & Corbin, 1990) wasthe primary means for deriving(grounding) theory. The first stage involved "unitizing" small bits of information derived fromfield notes and interviews,then codingthisinformationaccording tocontext. Provisionalcategories were established based upon "look-alike" characteristics. "The Ethnograph" (Seidel, Kjolseth, & Seymour,1988) program for the computer assistedanalysis of text based data. Through constant comparison, emergent themes wereobserved. There was further exploration of the emerging themes throughdiscussion with informants by asking probing questions to further clarify ormodify the findings. The last stage included the integration of thefmdings into a narrative text which allowed for a holistic descriptionand analysis of the social unit (Merriam, 1988). Findings What are the characteristics of the familial environments ofthe students at this school? The school in this study was in a neighborhood characterizedby gang violence, vandalism, drugs,prejudice, and family violence. The neighborhood was part of an urban area with a population of350,000. Regarding gang problems, a parent stated, "You've got tobe like these kids [the gangs] or else you can't have any friends, and they'regoing to cause problems." The traditionalfamily structure was rare in this community. A teacher at the school stated: There's a family divided, and a lot of times it's either the mother or grandmother who are [sic] trying to raise these children.... They're overwhelmed with the burden, the responsibility of it all. I've had one lady write me a letter basically saying that there was not enough food for her family. Page 62 Jen link

The self-feeding cycle of failure and frustrationon the part of many of the parents was passedon to the children. A counselor at the subsidized housing complex stated: There's a lot of feeling of people who donot have self- worth that they're in a hole and willnever get out of it. They resort to alcohol, drugs, violence,sex, and our kids see a lot of that. They're grown way beyond their years... not book-wise but street-wise in terms of things that happen in life. A support system in the homewas missing for many of the children. "The love and the things thatyou get from your family, these kids just don't get," related one teacher. Another teacherstated: You can tell how many hugs are needed around here just watching the children come up and wantto hug you, constantly. They're never touched lovingly. They'resort of lost in the shuffle somewhere, and they don'tthink they're very important.... And there's justno dream, and without a dream how can you go anywhere?

There was a high incident of physical, verbal, andsexual abuse. For example, a second grader told her teacher, "My dadsays that if I tell anyone about being hit with the plunger stick, he'llcome up to the school and beat me right in front of those teacherswith it." Conversely, there were parents who were afraidto punish their children. "Parents are expressing frustration in not being ableto handle their children.... It's kind of like they're just hoping they'll [thechildren] grow up on their own," related a teacher. The effects ofpoverty were observable physically, emotionally, and socially at the schooland were obstacles to learning. The population of the schoolwas approximately 250 students encompassing grades kindergarten throughfifthwith an ethnic distribution of 66% black, 2% Hispanic, 28% white, and5% American Indian. The 1992-93 mobility rate for theschool was 84% with approximately one-half of the school's students living ingovernment subsidized housing. The school wasa 100% free/reduced lunch school as defined by Federal standards. The average composite achievement

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test percentile scores for the thirdand fifth grades from 1990-93 were 34 and 40, respectively. What role do these characteristics play in theself-esteem of the students in this school? Supporting Purkey's (1970) study, the studentsbehaved in a manner consistent with the waythey viewed themselves. Many constantly ridiculed others and demonstrated aninability to empathize. This, along with low social skills,inhibited the development and maintenance of positive peer relationships. Ateacher stated: They come from a home where there's none[self- esteem]. Certainly, with coming out of a homewhere there's an abuser, whether it be physical orsubstance abuse, then there's definitely some self-esteemproblems there.... And whether or not they are able to even verbalize it or not, I think that some of these peoplefeel that they are just not as important as other people. "I can't" was an attitude many studentshad regarding their academic capabilities in the classroom. Somestudents were observed banging on their desks while claiming, "I'mstupid," or, "This is too much for me to do." This, along with a lackof motivation, resulted in low performances and failures. Many overtlyexpressed hostility physically and verbally, and there were otherstudents who were painfully withdrawn. Self-destructiveness andaggressiveness were used to gain any kind of attention. Ateacher stated, "I think maybe they feel badly about themselves, or they have this badimage about themselves; so they're going to live up tothat bad image." Poor posture was observed, and many students had difficulty in making eyecontact with adults even when they were being praised.Need levels for love, understanding, sympathy, and a sense of belonging werehigh. The students constantly sought hugs from thestaff members for adult approval and understanding. Yet, in manyinstance, when another student touched them, confrontations arose. Parentalinvolvement in the school was minimal as many of the parents wereintimidated and frightened by school. A teacher stated, "I thinkthey're afraid. I think a lot of them have had a negative experiencewith school itself, and to

G9 Page 64 Jen link them they're reminded ofa defeat or a failure that they've had in school." At times, the school staff seemed overwhelmedby the multiple needs of the students. Adding to the frustration,according to one teacher, was noticing that, "Every dayyou see one [a student] that has slipped away from us." In spite of the problems,there was affection by the staff towards the students. A teacher stated,"I actually love these kids, and I actually feel that I'ma positive role model." How do the interrelationships of school,a particular music program, families, and community influence the self-esteem of students? The school attempted to providea support system of love, understanding, and a sense of belonging throughfrequent hugs, a willingness to listen, the establishment of rules,and by giving students opportunities to express themselves. Inresponse to the question, "What's the best thing about school?",one student answered, "It's fun. You get to learn a lot of things." Other studentsstated that the teachers were the best part of school because, "They're funny and playwith you." The school providednumerous opportunities to expose the students to life beyond their immediate communitythrough field trips. In interviews and in their journals, studentscommented that these trips were important to them. The music program The year of the study was the thirdyear that music was a part of the daily curriculum for the studentsat the school. The students in grades three through five were receiving 45 minutesof music instruction each day encompassing voice, hand-held rhythminstruments, autoharp, and guitar as well as opportunities for rhythmicmovement and listening skills development. Field trips to enhancecultural awareness were taken. The highlight of theyear was the December winter program involving all the students in the school. Themusic program gave students a means for self-expression, culturalawareness, exposure to the city, and confidence. A parent stated, "Ithink it helps the kids out tremendously because theyseem to like going to school. It's like, I mean, they don'tthey're not always so up tight,you know." Another FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 65 parent stated, "I tell you what I think, that doing that, having the music and the different activities is really great for them." A teacher stated, "I certainly see more self-confidence and poise and even determination. I think some of that is coming from their ability to go into that music room and do some different things and be a part ofsomething special." Another teacher stated: And so I think that when they have such tremendous problems at home and people dealing drugs outside their apartments and shooting their daddies... when they have all of that in their lives, it's just a prayer thing. They don't see anything different for them in the future.... Music class gives them their vent, gives them their out. Concerning the students' feelings about music, one teacher stated, "The kids really look forward to going to music. You can hear them say, 'Oh, we're going to do such and such.' Another stated, "You can tell looking at their faces when they're singing, when they're doing whatever they're doing. The kids love music." A component of the music program was the select musical group the J077 Cats. It members were comprised of fourth and fifth graders who were chosen by myself, the music teacher, after auditioning. Rehearsals were held during lunch/recess time for twenty minutes with a wide range of music performed vocally along with choreography.The year of the study the group had numerous performancesthroughout the city and at the school. After rehearsals and performances the students would write in a personal journal about their performance, the group, themselves, and/or answer open ended statements. Examples of these statements are the following: Because of the way I feel I want to. I feel good because I feel badly because When I am in Jazz Cats practice, I feel Thirteen parents of the students in the sample were interviewed. Each parent stated that his/her child sang and/or listened to music at home. Every parent except one also had a musical background. One parent described herself as "an old hippie." She continued by stating,

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"So, you know, I've always been in music. I just always found itto be a way to deal with everyday stress and strain. My home life wasn't very happy and that way I could escape." Regarding her daughter's participation in Jazz Cats, one parent stated: She would come home and she would say, "Okay, Mama. Start me off on this one." It was one maybe I knew.... And I'd clear my throat, and we'd go through the motions. "That's it, that's it!" She'd sing it, and it's okay. At the end of the school year, another parent stated the following about her child's participation in the group: Abbey has completely turned around.... She's not shy to ask questions anymore.... Before, she wasn't doing that and the only thing that I can contribute that to is being in Jazz Cats to where she has something special to do.... She's seemed to just kind of mellow out to where I think the Jazz Cats have helped her with the idea that everything will work its way out. So she doesn't seem to be this angry, quiet little girl any more. She wants to be very loving, very outspoken. Abbey's teacher stated that she had noticed Abbey hadmore self- pride, felt better about herself, and had "blossomed." Anotherparent stated, "It's given him a little bit of confidence in gettingup in front of people.... Now it seems like he's trying out for more things." One boy's parent stated, "He really likes it and feels like he's something special, and he is." This boy's teacher stated, "He walked with his shoulders down as if he were carrying the weight of the world and like he just, just felt like he was a nobody. And now he's changed. He'smore involved in class." Another teacher stated, "I don't know if it's from within himself or from within the home, but Andrew seems to have become more responsible. I don't have to send home progress reports like I did last year about not getting his work in." The following themes emerged from interviews, observations, and the students' journals: participation in the groupwas fun; learning was fun; levels of self-satisfaction were proportional to levels of effort; teamwork was important; leadership was an attribute for whichto strive; going on performance .trips was important and exciting. 7 2 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 67

Examples of journals entries comprising these themes were:"It was fun because we learned new songs"; "I think I can learn the songsbecause I think I am a bright girl and when I leave I feel good";"I think I can do better than what I did today"; "My gold [goal] for the groupis to be a leader"; "I had fun. I have fun every time we practice.I have a great time being in the Jazz Cats." When discussing the group, onestudent stated that what was important to him was, "You learn.Learn to control attitudes. You learn to have discipline." One studentsaid that one of the best things about Jazz Cats was, "You get to go placesand sing." A parent stated, "And she loves the wholeidea of the going to different areas to sing." Examples ofstudents' journal entries concerning the opportunity to perform and goals of their performances werethe following: "Now I am ready to perform after today's practiceand 1 feel I can do it"; "When I leave I want tofeel good about my self "; "I had fun today and that was the greatest day of my life and Ihope we can do it again"; "I think we did good and I am good." The following are examples of students' journal entriesconcerning how they felt about themselves after rehearsals orperformances: "I feel proud"; "I [feel] good [when] I walk out of the room I feelgood about my self "; "I fell [feel] goodlike there is a fire just lit up in me." The principal of the school who attended almost every performanceby the group stated, "I can't think of anyof the Jazz Cats that, at one time or another during one of their performances, that you don't see abig smile come across their faces."

Conclusion

The central cause of essentially every problem involving young people is lack of self-esteem (Friedland, 1992). Carter(1967) stated, "The search for identity is real and traumatic for mostyouth in our kinetic world. The search for self for the marginal youthis without a doubt, more real and more traumatic" (p. 137). There aremultiple causes for low self-esteem inchildren living in a society characterized by massive socialdisorganization. The home, thechurch,the socioeconomic conditions,the government, and theschoolare constituent elements of today's societal upheaval, andall play culpable

73 Page 68 Jen link roles in children's feelings about themselves. However, in this studythe most debilitating circumstance regarding self-esteem in the childrenwas the home. In music class the children were able to be successful andwere able to relax their "guard", the self-preservation mechanism that they had built in order to survive. The bond thatcan be formed between the home and the school through music is extremely significant. Theparents interviewed stated that music was an important part of their lives.In an area with vast cultural differences, music can provide everyone a chance to appreciate differences and similarities among individuals and cultures including the culture of the school setting. Inan era when the home and the school stand on opposing groundso much of the time, music provides a common ground that can serveas a starting point for healing and sharing as exemplified when a parent stated in referenceto Ja77 Cats, "I don't mind supporting something that is that givingto a child." The benefits of music were continued in the Jazz Cats. Thestudents in the group felt successful; they felt good about learning andthought that learning was fun. An important discoverywas made when students who scored in the bottom quartileon standardized tests were given a thirteen page song to study at home, and thenext day they would have it virtually memorized, uncovering intellectual capabilities thathad been previously not been credited. Participation in the Jazz Catsgave the students opportunities for positive educational experiences through performances throughout the community. Therewere numerous journal entries centered around the word "fun". Faced with themany problems in their lives, the students'numerous references to the fun they were having participating, learning, and sharingare a testament to the value and meaningfulness of what theywere doing. This program did not and can notovercome all of the problems these children face. Self-esteem is difficultto define and even more difficult to substantiate. However, thiswas not a study of cause and effect. It was a study of understanding. Journal entries suchas "I feel good like there is a fire just lit up in me," coupled with observationsof the students' faces when they sang and thestatements of their parents and teachers leads me to understand that beinga member of this

7 4 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 69 particular musical group positively filled some needs in their lives, one of which is the need to feel good about oneself.

References

Carter, T.P. (1967). The negative self-concept of Mexican-American students. In M. Deutsch (Ed.), The disadvantaged child: Selected papers of Martin Deutsch and Associates (p. 137).New York: Basic Books. Conrath, J. (1988). A new deal for at-risk students. National Association of Secondary School Principals, 72(504), (pp. 36-40). Duerkson, G. & Darrow, A. (1991). Music class for the at-risk: A music therapist's perspective. Music Educators Journal, 78(3), (pp.46- 47). Fine, B. (1967). Underachievers: How they can be helped. New York: Basic Books. Friedland, S. (1992, January). Building student self-esteem for school improvement. National Association of Secondary School Princi- pals Bulletin, (pp. 96-102). Glasser & Strauss (1967). The discovery of grounded theory. New York: E. P. Dutton. McPartland, J. M. & Slavin, R. E. (1990). Policy perspective: Increasing achievement of at-risk students at each grade level. Washington, DC: U. S. Department of Education: Information Services Office of Educational Research and Improvement. Merriam, S. B. (1988). Case study research in education. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Purkey, W. W. (1970). Self-concept and school achievement. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall. Samuels, S. C. (1977). Enhancing self-concept in early childhood. New York: Human Sciences Press. Sartain, H. W. (1990). Non-achieving students at-risk: School, family, and community intervention. Washington, DC: NEA Professional Library. Seidel, J.W., Kjolseth, R., & Seymour, E. (1988). The Ethnograph [Computer. Program].Corvallis,Oregon:QualisResearch Associates. Shuler,S. C. (1992, May). Reaching at-risk students through music education. National Association of Secondary School Principals, 76(544), (pp. 30-34).

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Strauss, A. (1981). Qualitative analysis for social scientists.Cambridge, New York: Cambridge University Press. Strauss, A. & Corbin, J. (1990). Basics of qualitative research.Newbury Park: Sage Publications.

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THE GHETTOIZATION OF THE AFRICAN-AMERICAN AND THE POTENTIAL FOR ECONOMIC REFORM

Curtis Haynes, Jr. State University College of New York at Buffalo

Historical Views on the Condition of the African American

The ghettoization of the African American is a political and economic reality which has stimulated an extensive debate over current conditions within the inner cities (Karenga, 1982). There are many views on this socio-economic process. One of the most dominant, has suggested that the race and class characteristics of the ghetto make the environment similar to that of a colony- a domestic colony (Allen, 1970; Cruse 1968; Clark 1964; Charmichael, Hamilton, 1967; Tabb, 1970). Within a similar line of thinking, but assuming that the ghetto has no significant resource other than labor, it is argued that the modern ghetto is descendent of the slave quarters of the old south, (Winston,1973) or similar to the modein day Indian reservation (Willhelm, 1986). Many, while not using colonial nor Bantu-land terminology, stress that the ghetto can and must be understood as an aggregate, with the ghetto community being an intrinsic part of the larger economy. (Brown, 1972; Davis, 1972; Fusefeld and Bates, 1984; Coles, 1975; Cross, 1969) Many economists assume that African Americans within the ghetto do not constitute a special case to be considered outside of the main currents of the U.S. economy. They contend rather that African Americans are better understood as individuals facing discrimination either on the supply or demand side of the market, within a normally functioning capitalist system. (Brimmer 1971; Reich 1981; Sowell 1975) Other individually based forms of economic analysis also recognize discrimination in the market and suggest that in rectifying the dilemma, an extension of the welfare state is the best solution. Whether the ghetto has the characteristics of a colony, a reservation, or whether itis an important part of the broader U.S. economy, empirical evidence substantiates that a good portion of the African Page 72 Haynes

American community, in 1994, is ghettoized. This condition raises important issues of economic policy. 1. The Condition of the Urban African Americanl Itis estimated that in 1991, there were 31.1 million African Americans in the United States, representing 12.4% of the total population (Statistical Abstract, 1993). According toa National Urban League study (1994), the majority of this population in 1990,has become urban with 84% of blacks living in the central cities of metropolitan areas. This urbanization and ghettoization of the African American has coincided with a general population decline inmany of those cities. Between 1960 and 1975 the higher the percentage of blacks in a city, the greater the population loss to the suburbs (Bradbury, Downs, & Small, 1982). The extent of the urbanization of the African American is even more striking when looking at the twenty largest cities in the Northeast and Middle West (the snow belt), where 77% of blacks live in the central city, as compared to 28% of whitest. In these cities, census data shows that there has been a general population decline, as the white population fell by over 2.5 million between 1960 and 1970 and by another 4 million or 24.3%, by 1980. The black population during the same time period and within thesame cities grew by 1.75 million (35.8%) between 1960 and 1970, and by 200,000 (3%) between 1970 and 1980. On the other hand, in those urbanareas showing population expansion, the percentage of blacksas part of the total population is declining. These statistics disclose an apparent trend that African American are inheriting the ghetto areas of dying cities within the United States. This disturbing inheritance is being shared with Puerto Ricans, Spanish-

Census and other empirical data can provide critical insights into the material conditions of the African American, but the reader must be reminded that such data may be inordinately unreliable in many respects. 2 Peterson, E. P. (ed.), The new urban reality, 1985, Washington D.C. the Brookings Institution. pp. 14. The cities are: New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, Detroit, Baltimore, Indianapolis, Washington D.C., Milwaukee, Cleveland, Columbus, Boston, St. Louis, Kansas City, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Minneapolis, Buffalo, Toledo, Newark and St. Paul. 78 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 73 speaking Americans, other minority groups and low income whites. (Fusefeld and Bates, 1984). An underlying economic factor significant to these changes in population is that the economies of many of these stagnant or declining cities have shifted from centers of production and distribution of material goods, to administration, information exchange, and higher- order service provisions. These changes are particularly important to the majority portion of the African American population who in a series of 20th century migrations from the south arrived in these cities looking for blue collar jobs. (Fusefeld and Bates, 1984). Looking at post WWII data, a survey of 12 major U.S. cities3 shows a combined loss of more than 2 million jobs between 1948 and 1977, with the majority of the decline coming after1967in manufacturing, wholesale and retail. Selected services showed a net increase in these cities, except in the case of Detroit, St. Louis and Newark. The suburbs of these cities showed a net increase of almost 4 million jobs, 1.4 million in manufacturing, 536,000 in wholesale trade, 1.2 million in retail, and 800,000 in selected services. Census data on New York City, Philadelphia, and Boston, break down the selected services into information processing and other services. Looking at proportional changes in the industrial employment bases between 1953 and 1980, employment in manufacturing and construction industries as a share of total private-sector employment dropped from 40 to 23% in New York City, from 50 to 27% in Philadelphia, and from 32 to 17% in Boston. During the same period, employment in information-processing industries as a proportion of total private-sector employment expanded from 22 to 45% in New York City, from 12 to 43% in Philadelphia, and from 22 to 53% in Boston. By 1980 New York City and Boston each had more employees in informationprocessingindustriesthaninthemanufacturing, construction, retail and wholesale industries combined (Kasarda, 1985).

3Kasarda, J.D., "Urban change and minority opportunities", The New Urban Reality pp. 45, table 1, pp. 44. The twelve cities are: New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, Detroit, Cleveland, Boston, St. Louis, Milwaukee, Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Newark and Minneapolis-St. Paul. Page 74 Haynes

This change in the urban employment base has a serious effect on blacks who not only fmd themselves a more urban population, but urbanized into racially and economically segregated communities (Fusefeld, Bates, 1984). This isolation is aggravated in those central cities losing traditional jobs because many African Americans were not prepared for the change from industry to administration, information processing. Assuming that formal education is necessary for high wage service sector jobs, the census data on education substantiates the disadvantage faced by many urban African Americans. The modal education category for central-city black males and females in the Northeast, the north central region, and the South is "did not complete high school." For white male central city residents in these three regions, the modal education category is "attended college for one year or more." For white females in cities in these three regions, high school completion is the modal category (Kasarda, 1985). The significance of this lack of formal education, and isolation from important job opportunities is highlighted, looking again at employment base shifts in New York, Philadelphia, and Boston. Between 1970 and 1980 New York City lost nearly 500,000 jobs in entry level industries, Philadelphia lost over 100,000 jobs and Boston 33,000. Yet, in "knowledge intensive industries" employment expanded by at least 25% in each of these cities (Kasarda, 1985). To find those jobs for which their skills are most appropriate, many industrial skilled or unskilled black Americans of the central city ghettos fmd themselves having to look for entry level blue collar jobs, at dispersed sites, within the suburbs, exurbs, and non-metropolitan peripheries. Public transportation is inappropriate for such dispersed job searching, making automobile ownership a virtual necessity. With the high costs of car ownership in the city, the search is that much more difficult. The economic consequences for black Americans with minimal formal education being confined tothecentralcitieswith an employment base out of their range, includes rising central city unemployment, increased labor force drop out rates and growing welfare dependency. In the central cities of all the regions of the United 80 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 75

States (Northeast, North central South and West) the unemployment rates rose steadily for males of both races, except for better-educated whites. For white male central-city residents at all educational levels unemployment rates rose from 2.6% in 1969 to 9.5% in 1982, whereas the same rates for black males rose from 5.4 to 23.4% during this period, with higher unemployment rates the less the education. Black male central-city residents in the northeast and southern regions who attended college had higher rates of unemployment in 1982 than did white central-city residents in these same regions who did not complete high school (Kasarda, 1985). Unemployment rates illustrate only a portion of the problem, because they cover only persons who have actively sought employment during the four weeks before being surveyed. The effect is to exclude those who do not participate in the labor force because they are disabled, "discouraged," or those who want to work but cannot hold jobs for various reasons. Estimates of this nonparticipation rate for central-city white and black males, show (for all regions) that 4.5% of the whites between 16- 24 and 5.8% between 25-64 did not participate in the labor force in 1969, rising to 5.4% and 9.2%, respectively, in 1982. The increase in the black male nonparticipation rate was from 8.2% for black males aged 16-24 and 10.3% for black males aged 25-64, in 1969, increasing to 16.5 and 17.1 respectively in 1982 (Kasarda, 1985). Interestingly enough, when looking at these unemployment rates and labor force nonparticipation rates over time, a racial gap becomes increasingly apparent. This gap is also reflected in the social well being of blacks and whites in major cities. In a study of the five largest metropolitan areas in the snow belt4, on the average, the median family income of blacks was approximately $13,000 while for whites families, income was over $24,000. 30% of blacks lived below the poverty level compared to 8% for whites. 52% of black households were female

4Peterson, P.E., "Introduction", The new urban reality, pp. 13, Table 1. "Measures of economic and social well-being of blacks and whites in the five largest metropolitan areas of the snow belt, 1980: (New York, Chicago, Detroit, Philadelphia and Boston). BEST COPY AVAILABLE81 Page 76 Haynes headed, with children under 18, while for white female households with children under 18 the percentage was 14. 63% of blacks live in rented quarters, as opposed to 39% for whites. On the national level, the net worth of the black household averages $3,397 as compared to white households which averages $39,135 (Statistical Abstract, 1989). Consistent with their economic condition, a larger percentage of black central-city householders of both sexes receive welfare aid in terms of public or subsidized housing, aid to families with dependent children, or food stamps than do white central-city householders. 9% of the black employed males 39% of the black unemployed males, and 40% of black males not in the labor force receive aid. 28 of black employed females, 73 of black unemployed females and 82 of black females not in the labor force receive welfare aid. This compares to 4% for white employed males, 21% for white unemployed males, and 16% for whites not in the labor force. For white females it is 8%, 28% and 46% respectively. The difficulty of life for the urban black American is also reflected in violent crime statistics, as more than one of every two persons arrested for murder and non-negligent manslaughter in 1990 was black, and 48% of all victims of murder in the same period were black. Nearly 60% of all persons arrested for robbery and 38% of those arrested for aggravated assault in 1990 were black. The rate of black imprisonment in 1991 was 9 times greater than the rate of white imprisonment. 2. Potential Avenues For Policy The problems of the social and economic environment of the African American, within the urban ghetto, is significantly political. There are no inherent reasons for economic depression within these communities. Instead, the condition is a combination of historical, economic and social factors including various forms of segregation which confine many urban African Americans to communities in stagnant or declining geographical regions. Through normal relations with the broader U.S. economy poverty, unemployment, and a general maladjustment of ghettoized blacks into the capitalist system has persisted. Further, the decline in demand for productive labor in the U.S., has reinforced income inequality in the

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United States, and has special significance to the ghetto community, whose major export is unskilled productive labor (Davis, 1972). The economic underdevelopment of the urban ghetto reinforces a condition where many are unable to maintain a decent standard of living, and are without "respectable" outlets for their ability to work. Under the pressure of economic and social depression life is a vicious circle, as inner city inhabitants find themselves in some of the worst conditions of the Western hemisphere. Thus, a significant portion of this African American population reproduces itself in communities where individuals find themselves victims and or perpetuators of a frustration which eats at the social and economic fabric of the community. Ironically, at the same time these same conditions give rise to a depth of communal spirit and love which is unsurpassable. The problem of economic development for both black Americans and the urban ghetto is approached in many different ways. Tabb, in his 1988 article breaks the debates into four alternative perspectives. The first two are the so called separatist or self reliance views of either black capitalism or community controlled economic development. The views of Cross (1969), Coles (1975) fit into the first category of black capitalism. It is assumed here that capitalism is the most legitimate form of economic organization and that the development of a capitalist class of African Americans will do for the ghetto community what capitalism has done for the United States as a whole. The second self reliance view encompasses the sentiments of Allen (1970), Davis (1972), DuBois (1975), Ofari (1970), Karenga (1980), Stewart (1984) and Tabb (1984). Each of these authors postulate in one way or another, that self-sufficiency is significant for communitybased economic development but that community control must take avenues other than those presented through capitalism, black or otherwise. These views are contrasted to those on integration, where it is assumed that African Americans can be integrated into the dominant capitalist system as the system eliminates discrimination through its normal functioning. It is assumed that capitalism functions well, and with the elimination of discrimination and racism the problems of black America would be eliminated. These assertions can be found in the writings of Brimmer (1974), Sowell (1975), Woodson (1987), Wilson

33 Page 78 Haynes

(1978). The last of the four perspectives, another integrationist view, assumes that the black community can not develop on its own, and that a united front of black and white workers is necessary. This argument is found, for example, in the writings of James (1948) and Winston (1977). Some key criticisms of these theories of development must be mentioned. First, neither black capitalism nor the institutionalization of a few cooperatives will change significantly the structure of the urban ghetto. Ofari and Allen in their writings caution that small business whether capitalist or cooperative would not have the impactnecessary for significantly changing a ghetto economy. On the other hand, Fusefeld and Bates, along with Davis present arguments which challengetheintegrationistassertionsbysuggestingthatthe underdevelopment of the ghetto economy will not change through the normal functioning of the U.S. economy because the profit motive clouded by race dynamics willlimit investmentsininner city communities. They also suggest that government intervention througha welfare system as currently designed is also ineffectual because the system is not prepared to deal with the structural dilemmas of ghetto life nor to pave the way for integration of black Americans into the mainstream economy. Further, in regards to black community and white worker cooperation, this only becomes significant when the members of the black community are empowered through economic and social development, and when there is a recognition that there isa similarity in the conditions faced by the black community and white workers. Allen, Du Bois, Fusefeld and Bates, Davis, Hogan, James, Ofari, Winston each in their own ways suggest this. Recognizing the above criticisms as valid, the question remains: what is to be done? The points raised suggest that the dilemma of economic development in ghetto communities can not be solved through the normal functioning of the capitalist systemnor through governmentpolicyascurrentlyformulated.Still,economic development within the black ghetto remains necessary. Du Bois and Davis assert that race and segregation are an important part of the social

84 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 79

makeup of U.S. society and that ungarnished responses are necessary in dealing with these specific problems. However, outside intervention is not enough and I, along with many others, view a community controlled economy through collective or cooperative principles as crucial to economic development. Still, even though sentiment has been strong, there has been a lack of research on the role of collective action on economic development. This is a significant oversight because the collective and cooperative movement has always been a part of the "American tradition", whether organized through religious, worker, ethnic or racial groupings (Curl, 1980). Neither is collective action an anomaly to urban society Immigrants have always found ways to defend themselves against the harshness of urban life, and more often than not, this self defense has been organized through ethnic institutions of self help (Cummings, 1980). Further, there have also been numerous attempts by African Ainericans to implement self-determination through collective actions. In fact, such collectivism has been a significant part of black social development, ranging from communal African societies through periods of slavery, share cropping, and modem day capitalism. This view has been supported by a host of authors including: Du Bois (1975), Harmon, Linday and Woodson (1929), Harris (1936), Marshall and Godwin (1971), Ofari (1970) and Stewart (1984). The cooperative path has a long history and since WWII in particular, cooperative economic development as the "third way" (Warbasse, 1950), has become a reality in many countries of the world. Further, there is also extensive precedence for cooperative action in the United States, yet, to this date cooperative economic institutions have not been an important factor in the U.S. economy, and have nottaken root, in a systematic way, in any U.S. community let alonethose inhabited by the African Americans. Cooperative organizations ranging from consumer, credit, production, housing, etc, can obviously be found throughout the rural and urban areas of each of the fifty states, but, there has been no development of a systematic cooperative economy. Still,Isuggest that introducing the concepts of cooperative institutions as part of a broad based economic policy designed to stimulate community revitalization, may just make the necessary

65 Page 80 Haynes difference in the viability of economic development in the ghetto and the black community. As such, cooperative economics meritsmore study.

References

Allen, R. L. (1970). Black awakening in capitalist America. Garden City, NY: Anchor Books. Bates, T., & Bradford, W. (1979). Financing black economic development. Academic Press, Inc.. Brimmer, A,. & Terrell, H. (1971). The economic potential for black capitalism. Public Policy, 19, 289-309. Browne, R. (1972). The black ghetto as "internal colony": A theoretical critique and alternative formulation. Review of Black Political Economy, 2:4, pp. 3-33. Charmichael, S., & Hamilton, C. (1967). Black power. New York: Random House. Clark, K. (1964). Youth in the ghetto. New York: Haryou Associates. Coles, F. (1975). Black economic development. Chicago: Nelson Hall. Cross, T. (1969). Black capitalism: A strategy for business in the ghetto. New York. Cruse, H. (1968). Rebellion or revolution. New York: William Morrow & Co. Cummings, S. (1980). Self-help in urban America. Kennikat Press, National University Publications. Curl, J. (1980). History of work cooperation in America. Homeward Press. Davis, F. G. (1972). The economics of black community development. Chicago: Markham Publishing Company. Demarco, J. (1983). The social thought of W.E.B. Du Bois. Lanham MD.: University Press of America. Du Bois W.E.B. (1975). Dusk of dawn. Kraus-Thomson. (1907).Economic cooperation among negro Americans. Atlanta University Press. (1909). Efforts for social betterment among negro Americans. Atlanta: University. (1898). Some efforts of American negroes for theirown social betterment. Atlanta: University. Fusefeld, D. R. and Bates, T. (1984). The politicaleconomy of the urban ghetto. Southern Illinois University Press.

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Harris, A. L. (1936). The negro as capitalist. College Park Maryland: McGrath Publishing Company. Hogan, L. (1984). Principles of black political economy. Rout ledge & Kegan Paul. James, C.L.R. (1980). The revolutionary answer to the negro problem: The future in the present. Westport CT.: Lawrence Hill & Co., Publishers, Inc. Karenga, M. (1982). Introduction to black studies. Los Angeles, California: Kawaida Publications. Kasarda, J. D. (1985). Urban change and minority opportunities. The New Urban Reality, Brookings Institution. Ofari, E. (1970). The myth of black capitalism. Monthly Review Press. Peterson, P. E. (Ed.) (1985). The new urban reality. Brookings Institution. Reich, M. (1981). Racial inequality. Princeton N.J.: Princeton University Press. Sowell, T. (1975). Race and economics. New York: David McKay Company, Inc. Stewart, J. B. (1984, December). Building a cooperative economy: lessons from the black community experience. Review of Social Econ- omy, vol XLII #3. Statistical abstract of the United States, 1989. Statistical abstract of the United States, 1993. Tabb, W. K. (1970). The political economy of the black ghetto. New York: W.W. Norton & Company Inc. ,(1988, Fall) What happened to black economic development? RBPE 17:2, pp 65-88. National Urban League. (1994). The state of black America. National Urban League, Inc. Warbasse,J.P.(1947). Co-operative democracy. Harper & Brothers Publishers, fifth edition.

. (1950).Cooperativepeace.CooperativePublishing Association. Willhelm, S.M. (1986, December). The economic demise of blacks in America. Journal of Black Studies, 17, 2. Wilson, W. J.(1978). The declining significance of race. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Winston, H.(1977).Class,race and blackliberation.International Publishers Co., Inc.. Woodson, R.L.(Ed.) (1987). On the road to economic freedom. Washington D.C.: Regnery Gateway. Page 82 Lightfoot

PATTERNS OF DISCOURSE CONCERNING HISPANIC STUDENTS AND COMPENSATORY EDUCATION

Theodora Lightfoot University of Wisconsin-Madison

Project Motivation is a subsidiary branch ofa larger government funded social services agency, referred to for thepurposes of this paper as the Coalition for Urban Services. The organization is located in a medium sized Midwestern city which could, until recently, have been described as overwhelmingly middle class, and non-Hispanic white,or European American in population. In the last decade anda half, a rapid influx of low income, Hispanic and African American people both from larger urban areas and from Mexico, Central and South America, has substantially changed the demographics of the region, and has brought in urban problems such as gangs, crimes, druguse, and a higher drop out rate than local high schools have been accustomed to experiencing. Project Motivation is one of several social servicesprograms which have been created to deal with the area's new urban problems. Project Motivation was created with thepurpose of enhancing the educational opportunities of "Latino" or "Hispanic" teens in the public schools. The program operates within public school classrooms, but after hours, as a supplement to public school instruction. Theprogram is funded through a mixture of federal, state, local and charitablemoney which is separate from the public school budget. Staff members of Project Motivation have strong anti-racist sentiments, and believe that one of the main purposes of theiragency is to counter the stereotypes and low expectations of Hispanic students prevalent in our schools. Staff members point out that: teachers sort of cater to some students and not to others. It might be possible that given the labels by eachgroup and group reputations that they're not expected to doas well... That they're almost expected to drop out and not succeed. (Bridget)

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[Hispanic kids] start at the bottom and they have to prove that they can be anything different. It's automatically assumed that they're going to be poor students and [they are perceived differently] only if they try extrahard to show the teacher that they don't fit the stereotype. (Jeannette) Staff members are also concerned about the fact that schools marginalize Hispanic culture, imposing the view that the history and culture of the United States are universal, and making Latin American history, cultures and political viewpoints invisible. There is a cultural bias built into the curriculum of many classes, especially history and social studies ...where these students are not learning about their own culture because it's invisible in our curriculum.... This creates a sense of being culturally ignored. (Carol) In contrast, Project Motivation was created with the intentionof providing an alternative to the alienating learning environment of the schools. In this after-school tutoring program, Hispanic students are supposed to be in an environment where they, as individuals, as well as their heritage, language, and cultures are valued and supported,and where they experience academic success. Staff members hope thattheir students will succeed academically, with success being defined as graduating from high school, and continuing their studies in a two or four year college. The most important goals of the program are to provide an environment for Hispanic students thatwill build their self-esteem and will build their ability to achieve success in school. Our main focus is on providing a place, both a social and academic place, that will lead towards success. (Carol)

Theoretical framework

This paper looks at the efforts of Project Motivation to provide a non-racist educational atmosphere for Hispanic students in the context of an exploration of the way our society uses discourse, or language to 89 Page 84 Lightfoot construct limits to what constitutes an acceptable "truth" about Latino or "Hispanic" identity, as well as the reality of compensatory education and in-school social services. Thepaper will make the case that employees of Project Motivation, as wellas other anti-racist enterprises, which are attempting to improve the educationaloutcomes of Latino, and other "at risk" student groups,are operating in an arena of tension, between two strands of public discourse which promiseequal opportunity to members of disadvantagedgroups while simultaneously emphasizing how difficult it is for thesegroups to succeed. It will likewise imply that the prevalence of thesepatterns of discourse makes the success of Project Motivation and similar educationalinitiatives more difficult. This writer would contend, in accordance with Foucault(1972), that embedded in the ordinary words, rules, andstructures of our language are a complex web of meanings whichconstruct one particular view of reality as "truth" in preferenceto a multitude of other possibilities. In other words, the waywe define a word such as "Hispanic student," or compensatory education, is rarelypolitically neutral. Nor is it drawn entirely froman "objective" assessment of reality. Instead, this writer will assert and will hopefullydemonstrate to some extent in the body of this paper, that encoded in the most apparently obvious aspects of our everyday speechare unconscious assumptions about reality which reflect socially constructedcultural assumptions. When educators, or social service employeestalk about their "Hispanic students" or "Hispanic clients", theyare not basing their discussion solely on their personal experiences witha specific group of individuals. Instead, they are bringing into their discussiona whole set of assumptions which our culture has already constructedfor these terms. These pre-established assumptions shape and limit theway in which we as a culture, are likely to both perceive andinteract with members of a given group. Although the way in which language shapes reality islargely unconscious, it is subtly and intimately linked to thepower relations of society. Again drawing on Foucault, (1980) this writerwould assert that some versions of "truth" are more "authorized" than others, and that the relative credence given to some discoursepatterns, or ways of framing

00 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 85 reality over others, is intimately linked to the power structures of society. In other words, the way we talk about "Hispanics" or "Hispanic students" is constrained by, but also, in turn constrains, the way in which Hispanics as a group fit into the power structures of our society.

Focus of paper

While the staff members of Project Motivation are enthusiastic about providing an alternative to what they see as the discriminatory environment and low expectations Hispanic students encounter in the public schools, they are surrounded by the public discourse concerning low income and "at risk" students as are public school teachers. In addition, as a program which depends on public funding for its existence, and which lives from year to year depending on the renewal of funding sources, Project Motivation is vulnerable to public pressures to legitimate its work by demonstrating that its students or clients are sufficiently worthy to deserve a special program. In legitimating their program, therefore, staff members of Project Motivation have to negotiate with a set of images, or "regimes of truth" (Foucault, 1980) which have already been established, both concerning "Hispanic students" and concerning supplemental, or "compensatory" educational and social services for special groups of students in the schools. In other words, authorized patterns of discourse, or ways of constructing reality have already been established concerning what constitutes a legitimate compensatory program, as well as which students are needy enough to deserve funding, and what it means to be needy. In the context of this assumption, this paper looks at Project Motivation on three levels: The first level of analysis consists of the pre-established "regimes of truth" or patterns of discourse concerning "compensatory education" and in-school social services which have been ascendant in the last four decades, since large scale federal funding of such programs first began. This level of analysis is drawn from an examination of repeated themes. images, and metaphors found in social science writing concerning supplemental educational programs, as well as publications of federal

91 Page 86 Lightfoot funding agencies about criteria justifying spending for compensatory education. The second level of analysis in this paper examines the way the dominant themes and images identified in the first section infiltrate the way Project Motivation employees talk about their own students/clients, and the tension this causes between the way they justify their project and their stated goals of changing stereotypes about, and educational outcomes of, Hispanic students.

Methodology

This study makes use of a particular technique of discourse analysis to examine the use of language to construct a "regime of truth" (Foucault,1980). Discourse analysis can range from a detailed examination of word choice and syntactic structure, which is primarily useful for the in-depth examination of relatively limited quantities of data (unless, of course, one wants to produce a longer work, such as a monograph, or book), to thematic analysis,in which fairly large quantities of data can be coded for recurring themes, metaphors, and images. (See Agar, 1983, Woolard, 1988) Due to the substantial amount of material being examined here, this discourse analysis is of the second type, and represents a thematic analysis, or an examination of the repeated systems of meaning used to construct a defmition of terms suchas Hispanicstudent and compensatory education.

Education and public discourse

Since the immediate post war period, two important discourses have been competing for legitimacy concerning federal spending for education. One of thesediscoursesemphasizesinvestmentin accelerated educational programs which raise the level of education overall, but particularly favor gifted and talented students. The other emphasizes special compensatory funding for low achieving students, in an attempt to bring their level up to the national average. As we shall see, government discourse concerning educational spending in the

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1950s and early 1960s favored the former strategy, while that of the late sixties favored the latter. In the last decade and a half, the two discourses have again begun to compete in the public arena, although the discourse of compensatory education has maintained its dominance. Although education receives funds from a wide variety of sources, including local property taxes, state and federal funds, and private foundations, it will be argued that the debates about funding which have taken place on the federal level in the last four decades have tended to set the tone for public discourse surrounding education as a whole, and that program which are conceptualized according to the terms of the federal funding agenda tend to have a great deal of legitimacy. As educators of Hispanic students compete with other groups for supplemental federal funding, they tend to construct an identity for Hispanics as a group which conforms to these discourse patterns.

Hispanic students and education for excellence

As was implied above, post war federal funding for education emphasized educational enrichment programs, intendedtoraise educational standards for all students. In the wake of the launch of Sputnik in the fall of 1957, the concern about improving educational standards reached a peak. In discussions of educational reform, images related to national defense and the Cold War kept recurring, and the educational system of the United States was constantly compared to that of the Soviet Union. Not surprisingly, one of the important voices urging educational reform was a military man, Admiral Hyman Rickover who wrote in 1959 that while American children languished in schools which had gone soft with child-centered philosophies, the Soviet system was "encouraging its students to stretch their intellectual capacities to the utmost."(Rickover, 1959, 159) The response to this sense of crisis was government funding for a variety of programs which emphasized educational excellence. Because the talk of crisis centered on the idea that the United States was being surpassed internationally by technologically advanced competitors, most of the funding programs emphasized the teaching of math, science and foreign languages, and which encouraged the identification and

93 Page 88 Lightfoot encouragement of gifted and talented children. (Kaestle and Smith, 1982) In contrast to many current federally funded educational projects, the majority of the new programs were not pull-out or after school projects, but instead took place in the regular classroom during the school day. Funds were also provided to finance research in education. The best known of these funding initiatives was called the National Defense Education Act of 1958, in accord with the language of the times. One important group which benefited from the educational funds provided during this era was Cuban refugee students. It was during this period of emphasis on education for excellence that the first modern bilingual education programs were developed, according to a model that has been referred to as a "language as resource" (Ruiz 1984) orientation. In Dade County Florida, the Miami school district developed a series of experimental two-way bilingual education programs in which Cuban refugee children were used to help their English speaking peers learn Spanish as they themselves learned English as a second language, and continued developing their first language skills. The goals set forth in 1963 by Pauline Rojas, for the Coral Way Elementary school, which was the best known of these projects, clearly reveal this emphasis on bilingualism as a resource and as an advantage to students. Several of these are quoted below. The participating pupil will have achieved as much in the way of skills, abilities, and understandings as he would have had he attended a monolingual school and in addition will have derived benefits which he could not have attained in a traditional school....

He will operate in either culture easily and comfortably.

He will have acquired consciously or unconsciously an understanding of the symbolic nature of language and as a result will be able to achieve greater objectivity in his thinking processes.

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...He will be more acceptive of strange people and cultures and will thus increase the range of his job opportunities.

He will have skills, abilities and understandings which will greatly extend his vocational potential and thus increase his usefulness to himself and the world in which he lives.... (Rojas in Mackey, 1977, 68)

Hispanic students as a "disadvantaged" group

By the mid 1960s, however, the discourse justifying federal expenditure on education had begun to shift from an emphasis on striving for excellence, to a discourse which will be much more familiar to modern readers. Beginning in this period, politicians began calling for federal funding for compensatory educational programs for poor and disadvantaged children, as a tool in the War on Poverty. Thus President Lyndon Johnson declared his "unconditional war on poverty in America," in 1965, and stated that one of his four major strategies he set for eliminating poverty was "to bring better education to millions of disadvantaged youth who need it most." (Johnson, 1965 in Plunkett, 1985, 534) This change in federal funding strategies took place in the climate of a new interest in the social sciences in the relationship between education, culture, and poverty. At the time socialscientists and educational researchers were emphasizing two images of poor people which strongly impacted on federal and private funding processes throughout the decade. The first of these images was of the poor as participants in a "culture of poverty" which encouraged them to feel permanently inferior and cynical and to avoid participating in either educational systems or a capitalist economy. Rhetoric about the "culture of poverty" also emphasized the image of poor people as promiscuous and living in female headed households which are so common in the popular press today. In the words of Oscar Lewis, one of the best known promoters of the concept of a "culture of poverty," people with this orientation:

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produce very little wealth and receive little in return. They have a low level of literacy and education,...[and] have a critical attitude toward the basic institutions of the dominant classes,hatred of the police,mistrust of government ...and a cynicism which extends even to the church.... On the family level the major traits of the culture of poverty are the absence of childhood as a... protected stage in the life cycle, early initiation into sex, free unions or consensual marriage ...[and] a tendency towards female or mother centered families.... On level of the individual the major characteristics are a strong feeling of marginality, of helplessness, of dependence, and of marginality. (Lewis, 1966, xlvi-xlvii) The second factor seen as contributing to poverty in the United States was the concept of poor children as culturally and linguistically "deprived." These terms were used most often to label children of Black, Mexican, Puerto Rican, Appalachian or American Indian backgrounds. While scholars made frequent mention of the fact that poOr parents did not provide their children withrichlearning environments, much of the discourse of the day focused on language deficiency with dire pictures painted of children who arrived in school speaking "dialects" which were so limited and so non-standard that children could not use words to express the most basic concepts. Thus Arnold Cheyney, (1966) a professor of education was able to tell a story in 1966 which "would have been amusing were it not so pathetic" about a fifth grade boy who had been walking up the stairs to a third floor classroom for several months when he heard his classroom being described as a "third floor classroom". He asked his teacher timidly, "Be's we on the third floor?" The most widely quoted experts on linguistic deprivation were Bereiter and Engleman from Chicago, who wrote about the linguistic deficiencies of black children, and Basil Bernstein, from London, who wrote about the "restricted code" or limited language of the British lower class. Because the images they presented of poor children coming to school with linguistic deficiencies were so influential in the 1960s, short examples of their language will be presented here. What is interesting is the fact that despite stylistic differences between Bereiter

6 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 91 and Engleman, who are educational psychologists, and Bernstein, who is a linguist, and therefore uses more formal and specialized vocabulary to describe speech, they present essentially the same picture of poor children, as using a limited and poorly conceptualized grammatical system, and being unable to make use of language for accurate or abstract thought. The speech of the severely deprived children seems to consist not of distinct words as does the speech of middle class children of the same age, but rather of whole phrases or sentences that function like giant words. That is, these giant words cannot be taken apart by the child and recombined; they cannot be transformed from statements to questions, from imperatives to declaratives and so on. (Bereiter and Engleman, 1966, 66)

A child limited to a restricted code tends to develop essentially through the regulation inherent in the code. For such a child, speech does not become an object of special perceptual activity, not does a theoretical attitude develop towards the structural possibilities of sentence organization. The speech is epitomized by a low level and limiting syntactic organization and there islittle motivation or orientation towards increasing vocabulary. This code becomes afacilityfor transmitting and receiving concrete... statements involving a relatively low level of conceptualization. (Bernstein, 1964, 63) The names Lewis, Bereiter, Engleman, and Bernstein recur repeatedly throughout the late 1960s and early 1970s, and with them the image of poor children, children of color, and minority language speakers as linguistically deficient and therefore intellectually defective. Furthermore, the concept of the "culture of poverty" painted a picture of poor children as lacking self-esteem, motivation, and family values. When federal money was provided in the mid 1960s for remedial education for members of these groups, the funding agencies held this image of the deficient, unmotivated and emotionally unstable child of poverty in mind.

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Since poor children did not posses the proper intellectual or emotional skills to benefit fully from regular school programs, the problem of low academic achievement did not lie with the instruction taking place in the schools. Instead, the logical solution to low academic achievement among disadvantaged children was to provide pre-school programs, after school or summer programs, and pull-out programs in which children were remediated so that they could participate in ordinary public school classes and benefit from them. Since the appropriate justification for such remedial or compensatory educational programs was the fact that they served "disadvantaged" children, agencies and programs could increase their chances of getting funding if they painted a picture of the students who participated as being as "disadvantaged" or as deficient as possible. This type of orientation can be seen in the arguments put forward supporting the funding of such compensatory education programs as Headstart, or Chapter I funding under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) which provided financial support for pull-out programs in school which had more than a certain percentage of "disadvantaged" limited English speaking students. A brief quote from the congressional hearings for the Headstart child development act in 1969, which was to increase funding for Headstart programs, shows the power of this discourse of deficiency and pathology. A child's intelligence is shaped by his [sic] experiences and his mental development is heavily determined by the conditions and the environment he encounters in the first few years of life....What [happens in ] homes in which children have never seen a ball, a rattle, a bell or a mirror? In which a stick or a rock are the only toys? In which rags or old clothing serve for blankets? In which there are no eating utensils?...The verbal disability of a large percentage of these children stems from many sources. ...Children whose mothers are harassed by many obligations, who spend 12 or more hours working in the fields or in someone else's kitchen are not very likely to enjoy the maternal play and verbal interchange that children in more fortunate circumstances often know and

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relateto many "mothers" including older siblings, grandmother, neighbor and so on.(U.S. Congress, Subcommittee on Employment, Manpower and Poverty, 1969, 52-53) As a group which statistically had a disproportionatenumber of members living below the poverty line, HispanicAmericans were included in the groups targeted for Chapter I spending.However, because many Hispanic students were also limitedEnglish speakers additional funding was provided for bilingual instruction aswell as instruction in English as a second language through Chapter VIIof the ESEA. However, in justifying spending for this expandedlanguage instruction, Congress made use of a discourse of deficit anddeficiency, which was being used to talk about Chapter I recipients, andwhich was radically different from that which had surrounded existingbilingual initiatives. Thus, the new funding initiatives were not defined ascoming about because the country wanted to encourage bilingualism or sothat students could "increase [their] usefulness to [themselves] andthe world in which [they] live." (Rojas in Mackey, 1977, 68) Insteadbilingual education was defended as important because many Hispanicstudents were poor and "educationallydisadvantaged because of their inability to speak English."(Crawford,1989, 32) The subgroup of Hispanic children used as a typical example of those requiring bilingualservices also changed at this time, from the previous target groupof Cuban refugees, many of whom came from middle and upper classfamilies and were achieving well in school, to children of Mexicanand Puerto Rican heritage, who were more likely to be poor and lowachievers in school than their Cuban counterparts. The shift in funding priorities of the mid to late1950s moved federal dollars from elite programs geared towards childrenwho were likely to be high achievers in any case to low income childrenwho were more in need of educational spending.However, this shift in priorities came at a price. While low incomechildren undoubtedly benefited from increased spending on their education, these children also began tobe consistently labeled in public discourse as linguistically,intellectually and emotionally "disadvantaged" or deficient.

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Modern discourse on Hispanic studentsas "children at risk"

Since the early1970s the discourse of deficiency usedto characterize Hispanic children and other childrenfrom groups targeted for government funding hascome under attack on two levels. One level of attackcomes from within the social sciences themselves. The idea of linguistic deficienciesamong low income children was largely discreditedamong social scientists after 1970, when the sociolinguist William Labov publishedThe Logic of Nonstandard English, in which he demonstratedthat the speech of black or African American childrenmay be different from that of middle class white children, but it is equally logical.In fact, a school of thought has grown up in anthropology and linguisticswhich asserts that because children from diverse cultural backgroundshave patterns of speech and behavior which are notconsonant with those of the schools, such students should not have to immediatelyadapt to standards of the schools, but should in stead be provided witheducation which is sensitive to their needs. One of themost vocal advocates of this position is Susan Phillips:

To the extent that existing cultural variationin linguistic patterning that is not recognized by the schoolsresults in learning difficulties and feelings of inferiorityfor some children, changes in the s'sucturing of classroom learning situations are needed." (Phillips, 1972,392) At the same time, some groupson the right have been asserting that too much time and money have been spent coddlinglow achieving students, and that the nation needs to redirect itsenergies towards the achievement of educational excellence. Thus,some groups on the right have been asserting that too much time andmoney have been spent coddling low achieving students, and that thenation needs to redirect its energies towards the achievement of educationalexcellence. Along with this revived call for education for excellencehas come a resurgence of military metaphors applied to schooling. Onceof the best known documents detailing this view is A Nationat Risk, which was produced in 1983 by the National Commission forexcellence in education. On

100 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 95 the following quote one can clearly see resurgence of military metaphors: Our nation is at risk. Our once unchallenged preeminence incommerce,industry,scienceandtechnological innovation is being overtaken by competitors throughout the world. ...If an unfriendly foreign power had attempted toimposeon Americathemediocreeducational performance that exists today, we might well have viewed it as an act of war.... We have, in effect, been committing an act of unilateral educational disarmament. (National Commission on Excellence in Education, 1983, 1) However, despite attacks on federal spending on education for the disadvantaged, neither the distribution of federal funds, nor the language used to justify this spending, has changed radiCally in the last decade and a half. The terms "culture of poverty" and "disadvantaged student" have fallen out of favor, but they have been replaced by two other potent labels to which are attached many of the same images as the older words. Instead of referring to young people growing up in a "culture of poverty", public discourse now refers to an underclass. Examining a definition of the term from a work by Lawrence Mead, one can easily see the connection between the two.Mead (1986) defines the "underclass" as:

...those Americans who combine relatively low income with functioning problems such as difficulties in getting through school, obeying the law, working, and keeping theirfamiliestogether.[Peopleinthisgroupare characterized by] unstable family life marked by absent fathers,erraticparenting, and low self-esteem and aspiration. (22) (Emphasis from original) The term "disadvantaged student" has undergone a greater degree of transformation to emerge as the "at risk" student of the 1990s. Rather than focusing on a few specific factors such as language, poverty and lack of stimulation in early childhood to back up their concept of a child who need funding support, today's researchers point to a variety of

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statistical factors which cause a child to be categorizedas "at risk". For Cuellar and Cuellar, (1991) a member of the "loser's circle," (in other words a "high risk student,") possesses some or all of the following traits:discipline problems, attendance problems,poverty,single parenthood, inability to speak English, belonging to certain minority groups, "Hispanic in particular" (118) and family problems. What links the two terms is the semantic link forged in bothcases between membership in a particular group, individual deficiency,or pathology, and a strong suggestion that group members will fail,across the board, unless some kind of "treatment" is applied. One can see this type of language in the testimony presented before Congress in 1992 to justify the extension ofa special fund for education, training and social service programs thatserve disadvantaged teens. Teens' participation in the programs was consistently referred to throughout the hearings as "treatment." Furthermore, theteenage participants were described using images taken directly from the concepts of "underclass" and "at risk" groups. Teen participants, for example, were described as fitting into a profile of characteristics such as: school failure, particularly poor performance in basic skills; and early parenting which is not only linked to early school departure and diminished work prospects for both'young mothers and fathers, but also seems likely to lower the prospects for their children. (Hearing before the Subcommittee on Human Resources, 1992, 10) The teens are also described as coming from "marginally integrated homes"(24) in which the parents do not value education, and participating in peer groups which also discourage them from putting effort into schooling.(29)

Project Motivation and public discourse

It is within the boundaries of this tradition of public discourse that the employees of Project Motivation are attempting to constructan identity for their students. As has already been mentioned, project employees are deeply concerned about racism and negativestereotypes

102 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 97 of Hispanic students. At the same time, they mustcontend with a set of images concerning what constitutes "deserving students"and a "worthy program" which have remained fairly constant andprevalent since the 1960s. In the context of that quandary, this section ofthe paper explores the discourse, or language used by employeesof Project Motivation to describe their students/clients. Program employees arethus caught in a quandary. They are attempting to create an environmentwhich breaks stereotypes about Latino students, withinthe framework of pre- established- "regimes of truth" or standards of publicdiscourse which asserts that Hispanic students are onlyeligible for funding when defined as disadvantaged. As weshall see in this section, that underlying tension is visible in the way employees talk about theirstudents.

Definition of the students

Project employees stress the fact that their students are adiverse group. However, this diversityisgenerally framed in terms of nationality or language rather than family backgrounds,personal characteristics, or level of academic success. Hispanics in [our] county come from a wide variety of backgrounds. They are a diverse group. You can't assume that they are all Mexican orPuerto-Rican. They are also diverse in language ability aswell. Many of them are monolingual either in English orin Spanish. (Paula) When describing the students participating inthe program, however, agency employees tend to use the term "atrisk," because Hispanics as a whole have a high drop out rate in the statein which the project takes place. Over 46% of all the Hispanics in [our state] are not high school graduates, and the trend continues among young people. Over 50% of themwilldrop outbefore completing high school. (Carol)

Hispanic students have a hard time in our schools. They are 2% of the population in our state,but they are 15% of the dropouts. (Paula) 103 Page 98 Lightfoot

A number of other characteristics besidesa high drop out rate link the students to the imagery of risk foragency employees. One of these factors is social class. Paula explains that: most of the participants in the program are froma low social class. They are not used to participating inevents that are allowed for a certain class of kids that havemore resources.

The program students are also conceived ofas lacking basic skills. One of the skills they lack is the abilityto speak English, but the employees stress the fact that many of the students haveproblems with reading, math and basic study skills.

Students are also facing a lot of language barriers inour schools. Most schools are providing ESL [Englishas a second language] classes, but these ESLprograms often fall short....Also a lot of kids are arriving already behind in a some of their skills. (Carol)

Most of our students don't take good notes.... Weare working with the students to show them howto take better notes... Some of them don't have the skillsto keep up in class and so they get frustrated and they don't go to class. (Jeannette)

However, the students participating in Project Motivationare described as suffering from emotional problemsas well. One of the important characteristics employees identify in studentsis a generally low sense of self-esteem.

I think Hispanic kids like African American andsome Asian kids are affected by a lowsense of self - esteem.. (Richard)

A lot of the kids we work with don't feelvery good about themselves. An important goal of the project isto help students develop a positive sense of identity. (Carol)

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Remember, these are kids with very littleself-esteem. They come to the program already used tofailure and thinking about themselves as failures. (Jeannette) Students are also described as being shy, asfeeling that they don't fit in, and as ashamed of their cultureand background. Many of our students feel that they don'tfit in anywhere. As a program we need to help themfeelsure of themselves and proud of where they comefrom. (Richard)

Most of our students are shy and insecure.A lot of the students feel really isolated in school. Alot of the students in the school they attend have clubs,like French club, or tennis club, or golf club. TheHispanic students can't afford to belong to any of these clubsand they feel excluded. The kids also don't belong to anycliques in school so they feel excluded. (Paula) Because students feel insecure and isolated,they are also vulnerable to peer pressure from undesirablecompanions. Jeannette explains how the influence of a few problem kids canaffect the group as a whole: I think there is a lot of negative peer pressure.Many of the kids in this school tend to be followers.They tend to follow leaders, and many of the leaders are notgood people to follow. For example, between youand me, Angel. When he comes to the group hechanges the dynamics. The other kids who are willing towork when he isn't there begin to be disruptiveand lose their concentration. People like him influence theother kids into bad behavior. If the Hispanic students are "at risk,"the same is true of their families. Hispanic parents are described asoverwhelmed, lacking discipline and clear standards for their kids'behavior, and failing to value education. A lot of parents are working two orthree jobs just to make ends meet, because they arereceiving minimum wage. They are gone fromhome a lot and when they get 105 Page 100 Lightfoot

home they are too tired to interactas much as they should with their children or to help them withhomework. Also, as I've said before, a lot of the Hispanicparents in this state don't have a high school education. Educationis just not a priority in some of these homesbecause people are thinking of survival first. (Carol)

[There are] families where the childrenspeak English and don't speak much Spanish and theparents speak almost no English, so there isa total breakdown of communication in the home, and the childrendon't respect their parents sand they can't communicatewith them so they get no guidance. (Paula)

A lot of our students don't have disciplineat home. A lot of times their parents are workingtwo jobs so they are too tired to give proper discipline. ...It's hard forthem to get proper supervision and so they don't learnhow to discipline themselves. A lot of them haveproblems with truancy. (Jeannette)

In some cases the parentsare portrayed as actively impeding their children's academic progress.

Some of the kids, especially the girls, haveno time to get any homework done at home. As soon as theyget home they are expected to start working for thefamily- to cook and clean and take care of theyounger children. So they may not have any time outside school when theyare allowed to do any homework. (Paula)

If the children and the homesare portrayed as "at risk" there is even some implication that Hispanic culture addsto the quality of "at riskness." This aspect ofagency discourse is subtle and infrequent, but comes out periodically in discussions of cultural"difference." There is a kind of "fatalism" in Hispanicculture. That involves thinking about whatyou have to do today and figuringthattomorrowwilltakecareofitself. [Hispanics] need to learn to thinkmore about long term planning. For the kids this involves takingsteps now to

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plan for college rather than waiting and figuring things will take care of themselves. Finally, in one volunteer training session, one of the prospective tutors, a Latin American immigrant with an advanced graduate degree, spoke out saying that she was tired of always hearing members of her culture referred to as "at risk" in this society, and stating that her own children were not necessarily "at risk" just because of their Latin American origin. Paula replied as follows: Of course we know that not all Hispanic kids are at risk, and not all are doing badly in school. As a matter of fact there is a group of Hispanics in this country which is very assimilated, and their kids do not do worse in school than anyone else. What our program is attempting to do, however, is help those kids who are not assimilated, and are more at risk. With the concept of "assimilation", then, it is possible to still equate something in Hispanic culture with risk, but to point out at the same time that some Hispanics in the United States are doing well. Unfortunately this.type of statement also tends to imply, although subtly, that there is something more middle class about English speaking, Anglo culture than about Hispanic culture, and that academic achievement and doing well after finishing school are equated with having taken on aspects of Anglo culture.

Conclusion

It has been asserted in this paper that every society has patterns of authorized discourse, or regimes of truth, which exert a strong influence on the way members of that society shape the way members of that society perceive reality. It has also been asserted that those regimes of truth are closely linked to the power structure of society, and tend to both grow out of, and reinforce existing power relations. This paper has examined some of the common discourse patterns which have been attached to educational funding, compensatory education and Hispanic students. 107 Page 102 Lightfoot

The paper has looked at two discourses concerning funding for education which have been competing for ascendancy in the last four decades. While both types of discourse can be, and have been, used to justify supplemental educational funding for Hispanic students, both also limit and structure our understanding of such students. One of these discourses stresses funding education for excellence. While programs funded under the influence of this type of thinking painted a positive picture of Hispanic students, and Latino culture, they tended to exclude and undervalue the majority of Hispanic students who do not come from well educated and economically successful families. The second type of discourse is in some ways more inclusive, and justifies spending for children who genuinely need help, and whose families do not have the money to provide their children with educational extras, such as private tutoring. However, this type of discourse also has its drawbacks, as we have seen in the micro-level analysis. Many of .the arguments used to justify such spending, have involved constructing the cultural identity of members of recipient groups in negative terms. The logic of such a discourse put people who work with economically disadvantaged students or students of color in a difficult position. Like the employees of Project Motivation, they may find that their efforts to break stereotypes about their students threaten to undermine the legitimacy of their programs, and they may risk being pulled into negative ways of characterizing their students in order to justify the usefulness of their program.

References

Bereiter, C., & Engleman, S. (1966). Teaching disadvantaged children in the preschool. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.; Prentice Hall. Bernstein, B. (1966). Elaborated and restricted codes: Their social origin and some consequences, J. Gumperz and D. Hymes, eds. Ameri- can Anthropologist: Special Issue on the Ethnography of Com- munication, 66, 55-69. Cheyney, A. (1966). Teaching culturally disadvantaged children in the elementary school. Columbus, Ohio; Merrill Books. Crawford, J. (1991). Bilingual education: History, politics, theory and practice. Los Angeles; Bilingual Educational Services.

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Foucault, M. (1972). The archeology of knowledge. New York; Harper and Row. Foucault, M. (1980). Truth and power. In C. Gordon, ed. Power /knowledge: Selected interviews and other writings, 1972-1977: 109-133. New York; Pantheon Books. Kaestle, C. & Smith, M. (1982). The federal reform of elementary and secondary education. Harvard Educational Review, 52(4): 384- 408. Lewis, 0. (1966). La Vida. New York; Random House. Mead, L. (1986). Beyond entitlement: The social obligations of citizenship. New York, Free Press. Mackey, W. (1977). Bilingual schools for a bilingual country: Miami's adaptation to Cuban refugees. Rowley, Massachusetts; Newbury House. National Commission for Excellence in Education. (1983). A nation at risk. Washington, D.C.; Government Printing Office. Phillips, S. (1972). Participant structures and communicative competence: Warm Springs children in community and classroom. In C. Cazden, (Ed.), Functions of language in the classroom. New York; Teachers College Press. Plunkett, V.(1990). From TitleIto ChapterI:The evolution of compensatory education. Albuquerque; The University of New Mexico Press. Ruiz, R. (1984). Orientations in language planning. NABE Journal 8(2): 15-34. U.S. Senate. (1970). Hearings before the subcommittee on employment, manpower and poverty for the Headstart Child Development Act. Washington, D.C.; Government Printing Office. U.S. House of Representatives. (1992). Hearings before the Subcommittee on Human Resources of the Committee of Ways and Means. Washington, D.C.; Government Printing Office. Woolard, K. (1990). Voting rights, liberal voters and the official English movement. K. Adams and D. Brink, eds. Perspectives on official English: The campaign for English as the official language of the USA: 125-137. Berlin, New York; Mouton de Gruyter.

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"PERMANENT TEMPORARIES AND FORMAL CASUALS": COLLABORATIVE SOLUTIONS TO THE URBAN UN/UNDEREMPLOYMENT CRISIS

M. Bahati Kuumba State University College of New York at Buffalo

Globally, unemployment and underemployment have reached unprecedented levels. According to recent estimates, "for the 24 industrialized countries of the OECD [Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development], the official unemployment rate is 8.5 percenta "reserve army" of 35 million" (Brecher, 1993). The United Nations estimates that there are some 700 million people currently unemployed or underemployed in the "developing world." As startling as are these statistics, even they underestimate the true proportions of the global employment crisis. The widespread devastation and human misery resultant of this employment situation can be considered a form of "social dynamite" that could very well lead to a societal "explosion." The urban centers of the United States have not escaped the current global trend of rising underemployment. People of color, women and youth in urban areas have been particularly hard hit by the increasing unemployment and underemployment. They have, in essence, been caught in the crossfire of the global economic restructuring. Current economic trends have rendered a large proportion of them obsolete and redundant, thus relegating them to the world's enlarging reserve labor army. The current research seeks to illustrate the true magnitude of the unemployment and hidden unemployment problem in the urban US and put forth collaborative strategies towards its alleviation. The First Step: Accurately Measuring Underemployment There is a consistent and substantial undercounting of the level of unemployment in the United States. Bodies such as the International Conference of Labor Statisticians and the National Commission on Employment and Underemployment have criticized the Department of Labor's approaches to the workforce. Specifically, measures, definitions

110 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 105 and concepts have been deemed narrow and arbitrary, uni-dimensional, and static. The narrow definition that the Department of Labor applies excludes a great many jobless persons for the unemployment figures (Kuumba, 1992; Ginsburg, 1983). According to the Department of Labor, a person is classified as unemployed by simultaneously meeting three criteria: (1) being without a job, (2) actually seeking work or waiting recall, and (3) currently available to accept a job (BLS, 1994). Those jobless persons who do not fit all three of these criteria are defined as out of the labor force. This conceptual difference between "unemployed and "not in the labor force" has been a major point of contention. On one level, this conceptual distinction has been charged with being a measure of behavior, as opposed to condition. Thus, unemployment is seen as an individual, as opposed to a structural phenomenon. To define unemployment so narrowly excludes a large proportion of the jobless from estimation. By this definition, less than two-thirds of the working age population are considered part of the official labor force. Only 61.6% of the working age population is employed as measured by the employment-population ratio table (see Table 1). Where are the other 7.4 million people?

Table I Employment-Population Ratios by Ethnicity, Age and Gender: 1993

African Latino/Hisp. European All Ethnic American American American Total 61.6 54.4 58.9 62.7 Female 54.1 50.5 46.3 54.7 Male 69.9 59.1 71.6 71.3 Teenage 41.7 22.6 32.2 46.2 Female 41.1 ,21.6 26.9 45.8 Male 42.2 23.6 37.4 46.6 Source: United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment and Earnings (January 1994), 41(1).

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Part of the answer to this question lies with the discouraged workers. This undercounted sector represents a growing proportion of hidden unemployment. These are workers who are without employment yet are not actively seeking work due to disillusionment with the labor market and perceived inability to acquire employment. In 1993, there were 6.3 million discouraged workers. This number grew by over 100,000 between '1992 and1993. The subjective and arbitrary delineation between unemployed and discouraged workers excludes a great many jobless persons from the measurement of unemployment. Lengthening of average unemployment spells has contributed to the increasing rate of labor force "fall out." The duration of unemployment spellsisoften used as a proxyindicator of risinglevelsof un/underemployment. According to the Department of Labor, the duration of official unemployment has increased dramatically in just the last few years. While the average duration of joblessness in the U.S. was 14.1 weeks in the third quarter of 1991, this increased by 36.2% to 19.2 weeks by third quarter 1994. Over one-third (35.5%) of these jobless workers had been without work for 15 or more weeks. This is enough to discourage anyone! The narrowness of the official unemployment measure also excludes the labor lost by those forced to work part-time jobs byt economic conditions. Involuntary part-time employment is a major contributor to the underemployment problem. In 1993, approximately one-third (30.4%) of all the nation's 6.4 million part-time workers were "partially unemployed." This proportion was even larger among African American and Latino workers. These workers would have preferred to have full-time employment but obtained part-time employment in the absence of more adequate employment. Table 2 provides an example of the difference in the level of unemployment where discouraged workers and a proportion of underemployed workers are taken into account. Including these sectors of the jobless in estimates raises the figure to 18 millionas opposed to the official, unadjusted estimate of 8.7 million jobless workers. This difference is also reflected in the jobless rates. While the official unemployment rate was 6.8% in1993, factoring in the hidden un/underemployed raises the rate to 13.4%. For African American

i12 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 107 workers, the rate was extremely high. Close to one in four African American workers (24.0%) were unemployed when discouraged and underemployed workers are included.

Table 2 Unemployment & Underemployment by Ethnicity & Gender: 1993

1)0.1, Unemployment Underemployment All Ethnic 8,734 17,973 Female 3,801 9,257 Male 4,932 8,715 African American 1,796 3,635 Female 842 1,960 Male 954 1,675 European American 6,547 13,519 Female 2,793 6,893 Male 3,753 2,254 Hispanic American 1,104 2,254 Female 451 1,112 Male 653 1,133 Source: United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment and Earnings (January 1994), 41(1).

Uni-dimensionalityisanothermajorlimitationofofficial unemployment estimates. The official dichotomies of employed vs. unemployed, labor force participant versus nonparticipant, and part-time versus full-time that permeate official thinking do not reflect the real work-world. In reality, attachment to the labor force is actually multidimensional. That is, above and beyond the "employed/unemployed" distinction there are levels and qualities of employment. There is, in fact, a virtual continuum of attachment to the labor market which should be reflected in the measures of labor force conditions (See Figure 1). The mere existence of a job may or may not be adequate to meet the basic needs of a worker. As a result, the employment must be qualified by taking the wage level, hours available, duration of employment, benefit package andmobilityopportunityassociatedwiththe employment into account.

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Figure 1 The Employment Continuum

Inadequate WAGES Adequate Temporary SECURITY Permanent Limited MOBILITY Expansive Part-Time HOURS Full-Time None BENEFITS Complete Mismatch SKILLS Utilization

Accordingly, "underemployment" may be defined as employment insufficiencies that forestall the provision of an adequate standard of living for the worker and family. In the broader sense, underemployment encompasses everything from skills underutilization and lack of benefits to the inability to acquire the number of hours necessary to sustain oneself. Part-time, temporary and contingent work, currently the fastest growing segment of the labor market, falls into this category. The negative impact of underemployment on the nation's workers is virtually lost in official employment estimates. The growth to the underemployed sector of the labor force is phenomenal. Approximately one-quarter of the new job growth between 1979-89 was in part-time work. Part-time workers comprise about 18.0% of the employed population (See Table 3). The level of part-time unemployment is also underestimated through the process of counting part-time workers as opposed to part-time jobs (Tilly 1991).

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Table 3 Part-Time Employment as a Proportion of Total Employment by Ethnicity, Gender and Age: 1993

African Latino European All Ethnic American American American Total 17.5 15.3 19.2 17.8 Female 25.3 17.9 26.4 26.4 Male 10.9 12.5 14.5 10.6 Teenage 67.7 68.8 59.0 67.6 Female 72.4 70.0 68.5 72.5 Male 63.3 67.6 80.0 63.0 Sources: United State Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment and Earnings (January 1994), 41(1), Table. 7, p.191; United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Unpublished tabulations from the Current Population Survey (December 1993).

Part-time workers have wages well under those necessary for survival. Third quarter 1993 data show the median weekly earnings of part-time wage and salary workers to be $141, approximately 30% the wages of full-time workers. African American and Hispanic workers suffered even worse with part-time weekly wages of $123 and $140, respectively. The enlarged contingent of working poor in the United States directly related to the lowered quality of employment. Measures of un/underemployment in our urban areas must take this reality into account. The static nature of official data also poses a problem for a realistic depiction of the employment crisis. According to a National Urban League critique, "the Bureau of Labor Statistics currently measures unemployment as a "stock" concept. In reality, unemployment is a 'flow'conceptbecauselabormarketactivityisconstantly changing...Current measures of unemployment do not measure the "velocity" of unemployment" (National Urban League, n.d.). Ginsburg (1975) illustrated the way in which this "snapshot" approach to the labor market embodied in official statistics obscures the movement of persons between differentlabor market categories. The annual

.115 Page 110 Kuumba unemployment rates presented by the Bureau of Labor statistics actually average responses to the Current Population Survey (CPS) to questions about employment activities for the thirty days prior to the survey week. Thus, these averages do not reflect the labor market experiences of the respondent's year. The resulting data greatly underestimates the amount of unemployment experienced throughout the entire twelve month period. For instance, while the averaged monthly figures resulted in an estimate of 8.7 million jobless workers for 1993, a follow-up work experience survey that compiled the unemployment experienced by respondents over the entire year showed much higher unemployment levels. According to this alternative Department of Labor estimate, the total number of persons who had experienced some unemployment over the year at 20.5 million (See Table 4). This translated into an additive jobless rate for 1993 of 14.8% as opposed to the averaged rate of 6.8% unemployment even by DOL measures. Since the difference when assessing the extent of joblessness over just one year is phenomenal when different criteria are applied, one can imagine taking even larger periods of time into account.

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Table 4 Average and Additive Unemployment Estimates by Ethnicity and Gender: 1993 (in thousands)

Unemploy- Additive #Unemploy Averaged # ment % -ment % All Ethnicities 8,734 6.8 20,516 14.8 Female 3,801 6.5 8,804 13.5 Male. 4,932 7.1 11,712 15.9 African Amer. 1,796 12.9 3.396 22.1 Female 842 12.0 1,702 21.0 Male 954 13.8 1,693 23.3 Latino Amer. 173 10.6 2,474 20.0 Female 73 10.9 - 918 18.3 Male 100 10.4 1,556 21.5 Sources: United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment and Earnings (January 1994), (41)1; United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, "Work Experience of the Population in 1993," News (USDL 94-559).

There is another area of labor that is lost to official statisticsthe informal or "survival" economy. Rising unemployment and underemployment in the U.S. has led to reduced labor force participation and an accompanying increase in the number of "off -the-book" or unofficial workers. While the informal economy has been studied widely in the "Third World," it has only recently become a focus of research in "industrialized" countries. This conforms to what Noam Chomsky (1993) has referred to as the "pauperization and Third Worldization," of the United States. Among the most vivid features of the third world city is the inventiveness people apply to earning a living. Those who fail to find regular waged labor, or simply reject what it has to offer, create myriad ways of earning nickels and dimes. Washing windshields or selling newspapers to drivers halted at trafficlights, snake-charming, even waiting in line can become a profession if there are sufficient people with more money than time and 117 Page 112 Kuumba

patience...Although such occupations may seem marginal from the point of view of the global economy, more than a billion people around the world are fed, clothed, and housed entirely from their own resources. In many third world cities, more than half of the population work in this "black" or "underground" economy (Marshall, 1991). Association with the world of work is multidimensional. As opposed to the official depiction of a worker as being either employed or unemployed, the acknowledgement of levels and/or qualities of employment seemstomoreaccuratelyreflectreality.These considerations must be added to our approaches to urban employment and unemployment. The simple existence of a job, for example,may or may not be adequate to meet the basic needs of the worker. The existence of employment must be qualified by the wage level, hours available, duration of employment, benefit package and /or mobility opportunity. The degree to which jobs are available for those desiring and able to work as well as the characteristics of the jobs have to both be factored into any analysis of the labor market. Only an accurate assessment of these various labor market dynamics can inform communities' activity towards full employment.

The Second Step: A Holistic Education, Advancement and Employment Development (AHEAD) Component

The current employment crisis in the U.S., disproportionately faced by women, teenagers and people of color, stands as a majorcause of poverty and welfare dependence. According to Department of Labor estimates for the first quarter of 1993, teenage females experienced unemployment at the rate of 18.5%, approximately three times the nationalaverage(DepartmentofLabor,1994).TheHidden unemployment Index estimates African American teenage unemployment to be over 50.0%. Structural changes in the labor market coupled with the limited educational and employment opportunities afforded teenage mothers creates a critical situation. Theareas of education and employment are important aspects of the self-sufficiency equation. This assumption undergirds the proposal for A Holistic

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Education and Employment Development (AHEAD) Component of the Families United Community of Service in Buffalo, New York. Studies indicate that the training provided in most job training and employment readiness programs attempting to shift welfare recipients into the workforce provide inadequate preparation for self-sustaining, long-term employment (Amott, 1993; White, 1994). These programs have primarily offered training for employment characterized by low- wages, low prestige, limited advancement opportunity and instability. In order to move successfully towards self-sufficiency and solvency, teenage mothers must be provided the "state-of-the art" education, technological skills, and information necessary to compete in today's labor force. They must also have accompanying social services in place (e.g., transportation, child care, subsidized housing, etc.) to facilitate their engagement in higher education and training. Families United offers a unique opportunity to provide holistic and comprehensive strategies for educational attainment and career advancement. The community of services provides the needed supports for young mothers while the linkage with Buffalo State College, an institution of higher learning, provides access to resources at minimal expenditure. To that effect, a holistic and comprehensive education and career development component which seeks to provide the teenage mothers participating in Families United with access to higher education, tutors, opportunities for trade apprenticeships and exposure to a wide range of potential occupations and industries is proposed. Its components will include: Individual Needs Assessment and EvaluationThe needs, skills, interests and aptitudes of the young mother would be assessed. At this stage, an education, career and life plan would be collaboratively developed. Advanced Education and Technological Training This component would include access to tutelage, GED certification, College enrollment and/or apprenticeship acquisition in accordance withtheeducation/career/lifeplan.Program participants would have access to facilities at the university including; faculty, students and facilities for regularly scheduled course offerings, independent study and course by contract, tutelage and academic skills enhancement. 119 Page 114 Kuumba

Career Counseling and Job placement This component will entail exposure to a wide range of career options through site visits and career counseling for high-wage career options. Intheshort term,self-sufficiency must be createdinour communities.Further,inadditionto enhancing theskillsand educational levels, assessments of the hidden talents and resources of thecommunitymustbemade. Theveryexistenceofthe informal/survival economy implies that there is wealth within the community thatneedsto be pooled,organized and enhanced. Community economic and social development can be catalyzed through the mobilization of these hidden resources.

The Third Step: Movement for Full, Guaranteed, Socialized Employment

Along with the short-term, individual level strategies for addressing the problems of un/underemployment in the United States, there must be strategies to confront the larger structural causes. To this end, workers coalitions, unions and organizations must be strengthened. These organizations must be altered from their previous form to be more effective in responding to changes in the economy and workplace. With the rise of temporary and contingent labor, organizing in the workplace is losing effectiveness. The creation of underemployed workers' coalitions, unions, and organizations is becoming necessary. These bargaining, organizing and educational entities that seek to create protective legislation and practices for underemployed, temporary, contingent and marginal workers must transcend workplaces, industries, and occupations as do the problems of un/underemployment. Processes and strategies for organizing the underground/"survival economy" workers must also be devised. The most comprehensive long term strategy for alleviating the problem of un/underemployment issocial transformation. As the previous discussion of capitalist accumulation reflects,increasing unemployment inevitably results from a profit-based economy. The ultimate goal should therefore be to build a movement to educate and

I FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 115 mobilize communities of workers to the necessity for guaranteed full, socialized employment.

References

Amott, T. (1993). The war on welfare: Clinton's carrots and sticks. Dollars and Sense (November/December), No. 190:12-34. Brecher, J. (1993). Global unemployment at 700 million. Z Magazine (November). Chomsky, N. (1993). The prosperous few and the restless many. Berkeley: Odonian Press. Dixon, M. et al. (1985). Chicanas, Mexicanas and the traditional working class. Contemporary Marxism No.11 Fall): 46-76. Ginsburg, H. (1983). Full employment and public policy: The United States and Sweden. Lexington: Lexington Books. Godfrey, M. (1986). Global unemployment: The new challengeto economic theory. New York: St. Martin Press. Hogan, L. (1984). Principles of black political economy. Boston: Rout ledge and Kegan Paul. Hughes, J. and Richard, P. (19). The economics of unemployment: A comparative analysis of Britain and the United States. Harvester Press. Kuumba,M.B.(1993).Theunemploymentundercount:Invisible oppression. Unpublished paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Society for the Study of Social Problems, August, Los Angeles, California. National Urban League. (1993). The Quarterly Economic Report on the African American Worker. (June), No. 33. National Urban League. n.d. Unpublished manuscripts on the Black Pulse Survey and Underemployment. Tilly,C.(1991).Reasonsforthecontinuing growthof part-time employment. Monthly Labor Review 114(3):10-18. United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. (1994a). Employment and Earnings. 41(1). United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. (1994b). Employment and Earnings. 41(2). United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. (1994c). Worker Displacement during the Early 1990s. News (USDL 94- 434).

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United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. (1994d). Unpublished tabulations from the Current Population Survey. White, I. (1994). Challenging the welfare reform agenda. EqualMeans: Women Organizing Economic Solutions. (Spring) 2(2):22-26. Vol. 2, No. 2:22-26.

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THE MASSACHUSETTS AVENUE PROJECT: COMMUNITY REVITALIZATION ON BUFFALO'S WEST SIDE

Gary S. Welbom State University College of New York at Buffalo

The Massachusetts Avenue Projectisa neighborhood-based organization that grew out of blockclub organizing in 1992. It is dedicated to bringing diverse resources together to reverse the pattern of decay in a neighborhood on Buffalo's west side, and to initiate a process of social and economic revitalization. Buffalo was hit hard by the economic decline and restructuring since the early seventies. The city's location at the eastern end of Lake Erie shaped it historically as an important inland port, linked to the emerging steel industry. For most of this century, the Western New York economy has been anchored in steel and auto. As these industries declined with the accelerated capital movement and deindustrialization of the late-1970s and early-1980s, Buffalo was devastated. Hill and Negrey (1987) estimate that between 1979 and 1985, Buffalo lost 67,000 or 46% of its manufacturing jobs; in percentage-terms, more than any other Great Lakes city. The growth in service jobs has not filled the void left by this loss of manufacturing jobs. The loss of jobs and production has stimulated migration out of the WNY area and the flight of more stable workers and professionals, especially affluent whites, out of the city and into the suburbs. The city's tax base has eroded along with federal support for social programs, leaving the city struggling to provide necessary services. Like many cities, Buffalo is suffering a vicious cycle: As the tax base erodes, the city is unable to provide quality services. People with resources leave and pay their taxes elsewhere and the tax base erodes further. In 1950, Buffalo was the eleventh largest city in the country with 580,000 residents. By 1990, it had dropped to 49th place, with 328,000 residents, a decline of over a quarter of a million people (Rogovin andFrish, 1993, P. 5).

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The loss of jobs and population forms the basic conditions in Buffalo's neighborhoods, creating the foundation for an explosion of social problems. Buffalo had the "highest teen-age pregnancy and birth rates in [New York] state, surpassing the New York City birth rate by over 50 percent, and [the] pregnancy rate by nearly 35 percent, for the period 1985-88" (NYS Dept. of Health). It also has the highest infant mortality rate in the state and ranks tenth for large cities in terms of poverty rate. As of 1988, 21 percent of city residents lived below the poverty line. In the African-American community, the figure is 36% (Taylor, 1992, Table A). The school dropout rate is above the national average, and rising. And the murder rate is increasing rapidly, with a large proportion of the victims under 30 years of age. Buffalo's location has always made it a key distribution point and this is true for the drug trade also. The neighborhoods of the city are suffering from all the contemporary urban social problems. The west side of the city, especially the area referred to as the `upper West Side', developed through much of this century as an ethnic "Italian village." The symbols and images of this experience are still widespread. The 'lower West Side', which is closer to the downtown area, and more impoverished, became a center of the city's Latino community. The Italian population began to migrate out of the West Side in large numbers, beginning at the end of the sixties and continuing throughout the seventies. This created opportunities for the Latino population to move into the upper West Side. More recently, an intra- city migration pattern has developed that is bringing African-Americans in greater numbers to the upper West Side from areas of the city's East Side that have been hardest hit by economic and social decay. The Massachusetts Avenue Project target area is made up of parts of three Census Tracts. The combined population in these Tracts is 66% white, 10% black and 20% Hispanic. There is also a sizable Native American population and a rapidly-growing Asian population. It is a very diverse area. Nearly one-third of the population, and almost two-thirds of the kids under 18, live below the poverty line. Over half of the children in two of the Census Tracts live in families with only one parent. Only 29% of the homes are owner-occupied. Besides being a diverse community, it is also a community in rapid transition...and one that has

.1.2 4 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 119 been deteriorating. Yet, there remains a solid foundation for social and economic revitalization. The origins of the Massachusetts Avenue Project date to the summer of 1992. It evolved out of blockcluborganizing that my wife, Eileen, and I had been doing for the prior two years. Two incidents that summer, both involving the experience ofyouths in the neighborhood, symbolize what is at the heart of the project. The first story is about "Robbie" and our porch swing. We had lived on Massachusetts Avenue for 12 years and started letting kids swing on our porch swing because it was the only swing in the neighborhood.Early in the summer of '92, Eileen was sitting on the porch with a young girl who lived across the street at the time. Suddenly a boy appeared onthe porch. It was five year old "Robbie." He was waving aninch-by-inch cellophane packet of marijuana. Casually he asked, "Either of you wanna' buy some marijuana?" "Robbie" and his family lived near us for the next year or so and we got to know him. He is easily thetoughest little guy we have ever met. Yet beneath his rough exterior,he is a sweet, likable little boy. And despite his toughness, he showed his vulnerability. We later saw him break down and cry, and when he was alone we would see him suck his thumb. There were four other children in "Robbie's" family. Both parents appeared to be in the home for the whole time they were near us, but Robbie's father had no job.He earned a living in the underground economy of drugs. There was considerable violence in "Robbie's" life and considerable instability. There was a homelife and there were expectations of Robbie and restrictions placed on him, though not many. The family would move from place to place because of money troubles or other problems. While they were near us, their electric supply was shut off and they ran an extension cord from the upstairs apartment to their lower apartment. This was the kind of life "Robbie" and his family led. The mother walked out recently, leaving the kids with the father. "Robbie" is banned from the local Boys and Girls Club, the Butler-Mitchell, because he's always in trouble with other kids. He needs one-on-one attention that is not possible to provide at the Butler. In the origins of the MassachusettsAvenue Project, "Robbie" lent a human face to the reality of 'underclass existence' in our neighborhood. He represents animportant stage in the development

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of our understanding of that underclass experience. Lookingat the details of "Robbie's" life brought us face-to-face witha reality we had been insulated from. "Robbie's" three-year-old sister carrieda butter- knife around for "protection." Wewere forced to face a reality that had been all around us, but we began tosee it in a whole new way. "Robbie's" situation raised the question forus of how supports can be created necessary to lift kids like these out ofan underclass experience so they have an opportunity to become productive members of society. The other incident that summer involveda property a few doors from us, owned by a notorious "slumlord". Therewas always trouble at his apartments, and always neglect. Thissummer, one of his apartments became a flophouse and drug house; therewere often as many as 30-40 kids, aged six to 18, hanging out. Therewere indications that some of them were sent from Rochester to stake outa turf for drug sales. They would intimidate people living in the neighborhood. For example,one of the kids came up to a woman usinga phone at the corner store. He slammed the receiver down on her and said, "Get offmy phone, bitch. I gotta' use it!" Another time, after Eileen and I had walked bya group hanging out on the sidewalk in front of the house,a bottle broke a few feet behind us. Finally, one evening,a rival gang of teenagers rode by on bicycles. There had clearly been trouble between thetwo groups already. One teenage boy came out side door and into the intersection ...with a rifle. It was six o'clock in the evening. Therewere kids playing on the sidewalk and people were sitting on their porches. He sprayed bullets down the street, as the other gang rode offon their bikes. Miraculously, no one was injured. However, bullets flatteneda women's tires as she was getting ready to pullaway from the curb, with three kids in the car. We had a bullet hole in our trunk. We succeeded in pressuring the landlord to evict these tenants, but therewere five other shootings in the immediate area that summer. We thought about leaving at this point. But there is muchwe like about the neighborhood; we consider it to beour neighborhood. So we decided to stay and do what we could to change the situation.This led to the formation of the Massachusetts Avenue Project in the fall of 1992. Residents in the immediate area had establisheda blockclub two years earlier. The primary purpose of the blockclub was to bring

1.26 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 121 property owners and tenants together for increased security. A second purpose was to pressure absentee landlords in the area tomaintain their property better and to take responsibility for their tenants. The events of the summer of 1992 pushed this process to a new stage. Along with local city and county political representatives from the area, the Massachusetts Project drew together people from local businesses, unions and churches in the community. A number of professionals from academic and human service organizations, and representatives from the local corporate establishment, all people who lived outside the area, showed interest in the project. There were links with all levels of government. Finally, we had strong contact with the police department, where there was an expressed interest in establishing some form of `community policing' . The Massachusetts Avenue Project targeted an 11-block area and attempted to look at the problems there in a comprehensive and long- term way. These problems were linked together in a complex interrelated form and we hoped that out of the process, we could begin to develop solutions that were equally complex. Two things that were clear from the beginning: First, we felt that any successful, long-term strategy of revitalization depended on empowering residents in the neighborhood and involving them in the process from the beginning. Secondly, given the diverse character of the neighborhood, this meant cutting across racial, ethnic and class lines. This may seem obvious, but there was a divisive, racist consciousness in blockclubs springing up at the time. There was also a related class tendency to focus exclusively on middle class elements of the community. People in many blockclubs were advancing attitudes and strategies based on exclusion, rather than inclusion.DiscussionsinearlyMassachusettsProjectmeetings consciously tried to counter this trend. It was assumed that any strategy that emerged would be based on involving residents in a process that would be empowering and would be conducted in such a way that would build on diversity, not resistit. This raised a contradiction, however, because the vast majority of people who were initially attracted to the Massachusetts Avenue Project were professionals, many of them from outside the neighborhood, and they generally were more

127 Page 122 Welborn affluent and more white than residents of the community. The Project needed a mechanism to reach out to the community residents. The Massachusetts Project recognized that a number of directions had to be pursued simultaneously. Less than a third of the houses in the community were owner-occupied. If that number could raised, and more people could be given an investment in their community, it would have a stabilizing effect. Where there were somany single parents and so many families living below the poverty line, there was also a tremendous need for family-support services located in the community, to provide such things as prenatal care and parenting skills. This also raised the most difficult long-term problem: how to fill the need for jobs. This is an especially acute problem, given the larger structural changes effecting the area economy. How do we increase opportunities? How can training and education be usefully targeted to betterprepare people for work? The Massachusetts Project began to take steps along each of these lines. But there was an early tendency, in all the discussions, that kept returning the focus to the kids: How do we create a healthier,more secure environment for children of the community? Of course, changing the conditions for them could not be disentangled from changing conditions for the whole community. If we could make kids feelmore secure, and create more options for them, the whole community would feel more secure and would benefit in the long-run. If the conditions for children could be improved, people would be more willing tomove into the community and more committed to staying. This focuson children, and the drive to involve residents across classes and cultures, ledus to the Playground Project. Besides viewing the kids at the local drug house as 'gang members' and 'bad tenants', we also saw them as 'victims', as children trapped in a culture of violence on the streets. The Playground Project began in 1993. It involved organizing the community to build a state-of-the-art, 5500 square-foot, wooden playground. We needed over 500 volunteers. The engineering and supervisory expertise was provided by Leather & Associates, from Ithaca, NY. Initial funding came from a $5,000 grant from West Side Neighborhood Housing Services. The remaining fundingcame from city bond funds; obtained by the area's City Council representative. This'

128 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 123 meant that we did not have to do fund-raising,which would have been very difficult, probablyimpossible if it were to be done exclusively within this community. From the beginning, the PlaygroundProject was intended to involve and empower the community, startingwith the kids. If we could create a process where ownership ofthe playground was theirs, from before the shovel penetrated the soil,it would hold a different meaning for them when it was finished. If theyparticipated in designing the playground, they would take pride in it and treatit better. The Massachusetts Project worked with area schoolsand set up a Design Day, when Leather's architects went into theclassroom "to talk to the real experts on playgrounds." Inthe cafeteria of Buffalo Public School #77, they accumulated ideas and did the firstsketches of what was to become Sunshine Park.Students came up to the drawing table, after their lunch, to watch the drawing. The projectoffered the community an opportunity to come together and createsomething for the kids. It didn't matter what your class conditions, your race, your gender or your ethnicity. If you cared about kids, youcould join in. It was a process that created a senseof community, much like a nineteenth century barn-raising. The site where Sunshine Park is located is an L-shapedplot of land at the center of the Massachusetts Project area.It is in front of a city community-center, that currently houses a food pantry, and theButler- Mitchell Boys and Girls Club. The Butler became the centerof activity, the home of all the committees, including the all-importantChildrens and Volunteers Committees. With and through the children atthe club, we reached out to the community,letting residents know about the project and inviting them to contribute. We had good supportfrom the neighborhood weekly newspaper. We looked for opportunities totalk to community groups and distributed brochures with volunteersign-up sheets. Brochures were printed in both Spanish and English, tobuild multi-culturalism. One Saturday, we organized a grassroots publicity event, an urban hayride for the kids, with big,impressive Clydesdale horses. For two hours, we distributed brochures throughthe streets around the playground site. There were 40 kids in the hay wagon,and many more who rode their bikes orwalked along-side the wagon. It was quite a spectacle and attracted a lot of attention. 129 Page 124 Welborn

Volunteers for the Playground Project came frommany places. Residents from the immediate area volunteered, thoughnot in the numbers we would have liked. One of conclusionswe are drawing from this experience is that it is very difficult toovercome feelings of disempowermentina community where so many peopleare disempowered. One natural source of volunteerswas the alumni of the Butler-Mitchell Boys and Girls Club. Theseare people, many of whom used to live in the neighborhood. A lot of kids hadgrown up at the club over the years and many of them felt they had something to give back to it. Many Butler alumni worked each of the five construction days. Volunteers also came from many local organizations: businesses, churches, and unions. It was an opportunity for all classes, allraces, all ethnicities to work cooperatively on a joint project. It filled thispurpose, but imperfectly. The complexion of volunteerswas clearly whiter and more affluent than the neighborhood itself. Construction of Sunshine Park took five days, from Wednesday, June 1, through Sunday, June 5 of 1994, to be completed in time for the kids when they finished school. Many people put in 12-16 hours each of the five days. There were often close to 100 volunteerson site, using hammers, screw-guns, routers, circular saws and all kinds of other tools. It was quite a sight. Everyone had to eat, and therewere always kids to deal with. There was always one catastropheor another going on, but we got it completed, including a marvelous new mural, new sidewalks and fencing, and fresh new greenspace. The kids love it. The wholearea around the Boys and Girls Club and the communitycenter, which had become very run-down, was retrieved. Sunshine Parknow stands as a symbol of multi-cultural cooperation anda symbol of community revitalization. It also functions as a multi-culturalspace where kids brings their parents. It creates an opportunity for residents fromthe community to get to know one another. Children were, and continue to be, an important keyto building multi-culturalism and empowering residentsinthecommunity. Volunteers from outside the immediate neighborhoodwere almost exclusively white. The kids from the neighborhoodwere the magnet that attracted residents from within the neighborhoodto volunteer. This was the most important source of minority involvement and the main

:130, FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 125 factor that increased both diversity and community participation in the construction process. Now that construction is complete, kids, whatever their background, bring their parents to the playground. This makes the playground a multi-cultural space where neighborhood relations can grow and develop. The playground says to the residents of the community that it is possible to reverse the pattern of decay. It stands as a first concrete step in revitalizing the surrounding area, a step that was taken by many of the residents themselves. Now that the playground is finished, what is the road forward? How do we maintain and build on the momentum generated by the Playground Project? There are a number of paths we must take. The street directly across from the Butler-Mitchell has long been a source of problems. It has become a dangerous place. Many of the properties are owned byabsenteelandlords.Afterconstruction,WestSide Neighborhood Housing Services approached the Massachusetts Project to develop a strategy that would mobilize funds to make these properties owner-occupied. Their idea was to owner-occupancy, in process that would radiate out, away the new playground. This would be a significant step in stabilizing the area. Behind the Butler-Mitchell and the community center is a swimming pool and then a large area that used to be a basketball court and wading pool. This area has been allowed to deteriorate completely in recent years. We are taking steps to turn this area into a community park and garden area, where residents could farm plots of land and grow fruits and vegetables. The Cornell Cooperative Extension, an agriculturaleducation organization,is interested in an office where they could assist the community garden efforts. The Massachusetts Avenue Project is pursuing a proposal to bring services into the community center. This includes reproductive health services, an immunization program, family planning services and parenting education. We also continue to look for models of economic revitalization. We are still left with the most difficult problem that we began with: How to empower disenfranchised people? How to overcome the obstacles to multi-cultural cooperation in an increasingly multi-cultural neighborhood? We have made some progress on this through the Playground Project, but much more remains to be done. Many of the

131 Page 126 Welborn strategies that have emerged in the recent upsurge of blockclubs focus exclusively on mobilizing professionals, entrepreneurs, the Middle- class, private sector managers, home owners in the community, and local church groups to build political and legal influence. The result, in a community like the upper West Side, is often a white, middle-class group that lacks the diversity of the surrounding community. It represents particular class interests within the community. While this strata can't be neglected in conditions such as Buffalo's, it represents only part of the community. The primary focus of community revitalization efforts has to remain empowering the majority of residents in the community and working with them to improve their conditions. This requires affirmative approaches that involve more people of color and develops a greater voice for working class and underclass people.

References

Hill, R., & Negrey, C. (June, 1987). Deindustrialization in the Great Lakes. Urban Affairs Quarterly. 22 (4). Rogovin, M., & Frisch, M. (1993). Portraits in steel. Ithaca: Cornell University Press. NYS Department of Health figures, compiled by the United Way of Buffalo. Taylor,H.(July,1992).Proposalforacenterfor neighborhood revitalization. State University of New York at Buffalo.

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HOMEOWNERSHIP AS A SOCIAL EQUALIZER

Ted P. Schmidt State University College of New York at Buffalo

Introduction

Ask the average American what the "American dream" consists of and inevitably the answer will include homeownership. Reflecting this widespread ideal, one of government's (federal, state, and local) main policy initiatives since the end of WWII has been to provide "a decent home and a suitable living environment for every American family (National Housing Act of 1948)." In pursuit of this goal government took an activist role by offering tax breaks for homeowners, subsidizing the production of low-income housing, and building and managing public housing units. The 1980s, however, witnessed a dramatic change in political and economic ideology. The Reagan/Bush administrations promoted self- help, self-interest, and market-oriented policies, and housing policy reflected this same shift in ideology. Tenant management of public housing and vouchers for private sector housing replaced government- managed public housing and the production of government-subsidized low-income housing. The 1980s were also a decade of contrast: while many enjoyed the benefits of the Reagan expansion, another segment of the population experienced homelessness and poverty for the first time. As the U.S. economy continues to muddle along in the mire of structural adjustments to the global economy, the homeless and poverty problems have continued to plague us, and nowhere are these problems more visible than in large metropolitan areas. The city of Buffalo is no exception. Census data show that the percentage of city residents living in poverty increased to 25.6% from 20.7% between 1980 and 1990; median household income was $18,482 compared to the national value of $29,932; and only 43.0% of the 130,000 residential dwellings in Buffalo are owner-occupied (Masiello Issue Team on Neighborhoods and Housing, 1993).

133 Page 128 Schmidt

What can be done to remedy these persistent problems? Thispaper looks at the role homeownership has played in ameliorating wealth inequality in the U.S. In particular I argue that a policy designed to increase homeownership can be used to reduce measured wealth inequality significantly in the U.S. I conclude withsome policy suggestions for improving the rate of homeownership in the U.S.

Homeownership and Social Welfare

It has long been argued that homeownership is a key component to improved social welfare and support has come from both sides of the political spectrum: A family that owns its own home takes pride in it and has a more wholesome, healthful, and happy atmosphere in which to bring up children. (Herbert Hoover)

A nation of homeowners is unconquerable... (Franklin D. Roosevelt)

It [homeownership] supplies stability and rootedness. (Ronald Reagan)

Homeownership continues to be one of the highest social priorities in America. (George Bush)

(Home)Ownership breeds pride and pride means strength for our neighborhoods andfor Buffalo.(Anthony Masiello, Mayor of Buffalo) The political support for homeownership is a reflection of the widespread desire of Americans to purchase andown a home. Indeed, the 1978 HUD Survey on the Quality of Community Life reported that 75.0% of all Americans would prefer to own a single-family home, and this preference cut across lines of race, class, and gender. Regardless of its political popularity, homeownershipas public policy must still be justified on economic grounds. The justification of providing public incentives for homeownership usually relieson three arguments":first,it provides financial security in the form ofa

:134 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 129 marketable asset; second, it is argued that homeownership induces a greater sense of psychological security; and third, homeownership has extensive "positive externalities" for society. The latter point is the most important economic justification. An externality is a spillover cost or benefit associated with the consumption or production of a good or service. In the case of homeownership, it has been argued that there are extensive positive benefits that neighbors, communities, and society gain, but these gains are not captured in the market place. Given that the market does not measure the external benefits of increased homeownership, economic theory suggests that public policies be used to stimulate the production or supply of this good. There is a fourth argument for the use of public subsidies to increase homeownership which has received little attention: increased homeownership is one of the most important ways to reduce wealth inequality (Schmidt, 1991). I discuss the relationship between homeownership and wealth inequality in the next section.

Housing and the Distribution of Wealth

While it has long been maintained that the United States is the "land of equal opportunity," it ranks near the bottom in terms of "equality of outcome?' The data show that the U.S. has one of the highest rates of income and wealth inequality among developed countries (Atkinson, Rainwater, and Smeeding, 1994). Table I shows measures of household income and wealth inequality for selected years using the Gini ratio and the share of income and wealth held by the top 5.0% percent of households.' The Gini ratio and the share of income held by the richest 5.0% of households indicate that income inequality has been increasing since the late 1960s. While U.S. income inequality is relatively extreme, the distribution of wealth in the U.S. is even

The Gini ratio is an index of inequality ranging from 0 to 1, with a Gini ratio of 1 being the highest possible level of inequality, and a Gini ratio of 0 indicating perfect equality. a Page 130 Schmidt

2 worse.The Gini ratio for wealth is nearly double the income value and indicates that measured wealth inequalitywas relatively stable over the period between 1963 and 1989.

Table 1 U.S. Wealth and Income Inequality

1963 1968 1983 989 Gini Ratio Income NA .388 .414 .431 Wealth .76 NA .795 .79 Top 5% Income NA 16.6% 17.1% 18.9% Mean * $97,714 108,760 138,185 Wealth 52.3% NA 56.1% 60.0% Mean $869,752 NA 1,766,3922,209,074 * In 1989 dollars. Sources: Schmidt (1994); U.S. Bureau of the Census (1991).

However, the proportion of wealth held by the richest 5% of households indicates wealth inequality increasedover the entire periodfrom 52.3% in 1963, to 56.1% in 1983, and 60.0% in 1989.3

2 Measuring wealth has always been more problematic than measuring income because of the paucity of data. The two mainsources of wealth data are household surveys and estate tax records of the deceased. In addition, there isno single consistent definition of wealth; the definition used dependsupon what the researcher intends to investigate. The definition of wealth used here isthe concept of net worth -- assets minus liabilities, and the source of data is the household surveys. However, the assets available from thesurvey data only include checking, saving, and money market accounts, U.S. savings bonds, certificates of deposit, bonds, publicly traded stocks and mutual funds, housing and other real estate, and the liabilities include mortgage debt, installment debt, and credit card debt. For a complete discussion of these issuessee Schmidt (1991).

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Another shortcoming of the data in Table Iis the lack of information for the period between 1963 and 1983. Schmidt (1991) used alternative sources of survey data to construct a trend estimate in wealth inequality which covers the period between 1963 and 1983. Figure 1 shows this trend movement in wealth concentration over this period. Schmidt's survey data indicate there was a significant drop in measured inequality during the mid 1970s, but inequality has continued to worsen since reaching this trough.

Figure 1 Gini Coefficient SCF (Base Samples) 1953-83

0.8 0.79 - 0.78 0.77 - 0.76 - 0.75 0.74 0.73 0.72 0.71 0.7 0.69 0.68 0.67 0.66 GINI 0.65 0.64 0.63 0.62 0.61 0.6 1953 1962 1970 1977 1983

What role did housing play in bringing about these changes in the distribution of wealth? The evidence suggests that changes in the concentration and value of property assets (housing and other real

3The reason one gets inconsistent results between the two measures is because the Gini ratio is more sensitive to changes in distributions with less skewness than distributions that are highly skewed (Champernowne, 1974).

1.3 7 Page 132 Schmidt estate) have played a significant role in creating changes in the distribution of household wealth over this period. Table II displaysa decomposition of the Gini ratio for the year 1983. Net worth is decomposed into liquid assets, bonds, stocks, property, otherassets, and debt. Column one calculates the proportion of each componentto net worth (for example, bonds represented 19.1% of net worth in 1983). Column two shows the concentration ratio of each component. The concentration ratio is calculated in the same manneras the Gini ratio: households are ranked in order of net worth, from the poorestto the richest, then a measure of concentration of the individual components is calculated as if one were calculating a Gini ratio. Themore evenly distributed each component is, the lower its concentration ratio. The Gini ratio can be found by taking the product of columnsone and two (columnthree),thensumming themtogether.Therefore,the contribution to measured inequality from each componentcan be found as a function of 1) its significance as a proportion of net worth, and 2) how widely held it is among the distribution of households. Hence, changes in the value of a component over time will affect its proportion of net worth (column one), and more (less) widespread ownership ofan asset will decrease (increase) its concentration ratio (column two).

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Table 2 Net Worth (NWI) & Sources of Inequality --1983 SCF

1 2 3 4 Components of NWI u C u C (u C)IG

Liquid Assets .191 .677 .129 17.5

Bonds .038 .909 .035 4.7

Stocks (public) .11 .896 .098 13.3

Property .896 .611 .547 74.1

Other Assets .02 .738 .015 2.0

Debt (negative) -.255 .339 -.086 11.6

Net Worth (NWI) 1.00 .738 .738 100.0

Column (1): Ili = The net worth share of the ith component. Column (2): The index of inequality in the distribution of the ith source of net worth. For net worth (NW1) it shows the Gini coefficient, G. For the other rows it shows the concentration ratioof the corresponding source of net worth. Column (3): The contribution of the ith source of net worth to the Gini coefficient which is = Eugi. Column (4): Percent of total inequality contributed by the ith source of net worth.

Table 3 Property Assets and Measured Inequality

Year Weight Con. Ratio Gini Ratio

1970 .832 .574 .739

1977 .904 .497 .657

1983 .896 .611 .738

139 Page 134 Schmidt

Since the most significant movement in measured inequality occurred between 1970 and 1983, I will focus on the effect changes in property had prior to and after that year. Table HI shows the ratio of property to net worth, the concentration ratio of property, and the Gini ratio for each year. From 1970 to 1977 property's proportion of net worth increased from .832 to .9044; which indicates that housing and real estate values increased relative to other assets, and it implies that property had the largest impact on measured inequality in 1977. The concentration ratio for property fell from .574 to .497, which indicates that property became more equally distributed over this period, and is consistent with an observed increase in homeownership rates from 64.2% to 65.0%. The combination of these two effects,a higher proportion of property to net worth and a lower concentration ratio, significantly reduced measured inequality from 1970 to 1977 (the Gini ratio fell from .739 to .657). From 1977 to. 1983 property's proportion of net worth fell slightly from .904 to .896. However, its concentration ratio increased from .497 to .611, indicating that property assets became more concentrated over this period. From 1977 to 1983, then, housing and other real estate assets contributed to the rise in inequality mainly because property assets became more concentrated (homeownership rates declined in the early 1980s). As these data suggest, property assets had a significant effecton the distribution of household wealth from 1970 to 1983. While changes in property values contributed somewhat to changes in measured wealth inequality, the most important contributing factor was the change in the concentration of property assets. The more equitable the distribution of property assets, the more equitable the distribution of wealth. While this

4 For most households, housing and property represent the most significant contribution to gross wealth, or total assets. As of 1983 housing represented 31.7 percent of the average (mean) household's wealth. When other properties are included, this proportion increased to 47.4 percent of total wealth. Whenone excludes the top 1-2 percent of the wealthiest households, property constitutes over two-thirds of total assets. For the majority of the population, then, housing and property assets are their main sources of wealth.

1 4 9 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 135 statement is true for any asset, housing as a proportion ofwealth represents the largest component held by households. Given that increased homeownership has played such a significant role in equalizing the distribution of wealth, then proponents of homeownership policies have a stronger case for expanding such programs.

An Overview of Post-war Public Housing Policies

Since the post-war period homeownership rates have increased in each decade with the lone exception of the 1980s (Table IV). In this section I discuss the impact some of the more important federal programs have had on homeownership in theU.S. Throughout most of the post-war period public housing policies used to promote homeownership included various programs that built subsidized private housing, offered below market interest rates, and lowered down-payments and other closing costs. Some of the more successful programs were the Servicemen's Readjustment Acts of 1944 and 1945, and the Housing Act of 1968.

Table 4 Percent of Owner-Occupied Households

Year 1.950 1960 1970 1980 1990

% Total 55.0 61.9 62.9 64.4 64.2

% White 57.0 64.4 65.4 67.8 68.2

% Black 34.9 38.4 42.1 44.4 43.4

The Servicemen's Acts created the Veterans Administration (VA) Home Loan Program. The VA program insured mortgages, offered lower than marketinterestrates,and reduced down-payments. Combined with the post-war economic expansion, the VA program spurred one of the sharpest increases in homeownership rates in history, from 44.0 percent in 1940 to 61.9 percent in 1960. Page 136 Schmidt

Another successful program was the Section 235 Program contained in the Housing Act of 1968. This programwas designed to promote homeownership by subsidizing interest rates and allowing low down-payments for low to moderate-income buyers. It helped stimulate a housing boom from 1971-73, as housing starts averaged over 2 million annually (Mitchell, 1993). In the 1970s, however, housing policy took an ideological shift away from public subsidies to market-based incentive programs. The centerpiece legislation was the Section 8 Existing Housing Program created under Nixon and signed into law by Ford in 1974. The Section 8 Program gave low-income families certificates to use as rental subsidies for privately-owned housing as an alternative to public housing units. However, federally subsidized construction of private housingwas still being funded. This changed dramatically with the inauguration of Ronald Reagan in 1981. The Reagan Administration cut funding for new construction of low-income housing and replaceditwith the Housing Voucher Program, an extension of the Section 8 Program. With the cuts in funding, the number of subsidized housing starts per year dropped from 173,249 in 1980 to under 15,000 in 1986 (Stegman, 1991). However, the low-income housing program was supposed to be replaced by the rental assistance program. The impetus for this change in policy was evidence from various studies performed in the late 1970s and earlier 1980s which purported to show that vouchers were much more cost efficient than building low- income housing.5 The important point here is that the voucher system replaced a low-income homeownership program witha low-income rental assistance program. Thus, even if the voucher systemwas more cost effective in providing overall shelter, the substitution of vouchers

5 While the voucher system may be more cost efficient than buildingnew public housing units, it has not helped improve the rate of homeownership, and it may even be more expensive than alternative policies. For example, in 1987 federal outlays per household assisted under HUD's Section 235 and Section 502 programs averaged $1,906, which was considerably lower than theaverage direct federal outlay for a recipient of a Section 8 certificate or housing voucher at $3,013 (Stegman, 1991, p.42).

142 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 137 for low-income housing construction obviously reduced the rate of homeownership over this period. It was this fundamental shift in ideology, combined with declining incomes and employment from therecession,thatcreatedthe downward trend in homeownership rates during the 1980s. Even as real median family income began to increase after the recession of 1981-82, homeownership rates dropped as federally funded programs that built subsidized housing were literally phased out.

Conclusion: Housing Policy for the 1990s

It has been argued in this paper that housing and other property assets have played a significant role in changing the distribution of wealth in the U.S. It is clear, as a policy option, one way to reduce inequality in the U.S. is to promote more widespread homeownership. What would such policies entail? Historically, the most successful programs have contained two key ingfedients: first, payments must be kept relatively low through either an interest rate subsidy or a cost of production subsidy; second, the up- front fees, down payments and closing costs, must be kept to a minimum. In addition, no wide-scale homeownership program ever occurred without concomitant income growth. So any government program to raise the level of homeownership must include these three components. There is nothing new in these suggestions, in fact there are already many local and state programs that help the first-time, low-income homebuyer.6 What is needed is support and funding from the federal level so that these programs could be expanded. If the federal government funded a low to moderate income homeownership program, combined with urban redevelopment programs, then maybe we could witness a renaissance of our metropolitan areas. Moreover,

6For example, New York State has a low interest program for first-time buyers known as SONYMA. In addition, SONYMA and Fleet Bank have combined resources and offer a program that reduces the down-payment, closing fees, and subsidizes the interest rate. 143 Page 138 Schmidt any increase in homeownership will tend to bring about greater financial and social equality. In this era of fiscal austerity, how could sucha program be initiated? First, just as the Reagan administration reduced expenditures on the production of subsidized housing and increased expenditures on vouchers, the process could be reversed toa point of parity at least. Second, there is an enormous bureaucracy administering all housing programs the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Streamlining HUD could save millions, if not billions, of dollars. Third, one of the most generous welfare programs in the U.S. is the mortgage interest deduction. Certainly, it would be difficult to eliminate this middle and upper class welfare program, but, at the least,a cap could be put on the maximum amount of interest deducted ($10,000 for example). In this era of budget constraints and cut-backs, I do not believewe are suffering from a lack of funding; rather, I believe we are suffering from a lack of leadership and creativity. While Iam optimistic to see that the city of Buffalo is heading in the right direction, and President Clinton mentioned a comprehensive homeownershipprogram while in California stumping for democrats in 1994, it looksas if the possibility of an expanded program at the federal level is going to be "newtered" by the republican Congress...

References

Aaron, H. J. (1972). Shelter and subsidieswho benefits from federal housing policies?. Brookings Institution, Washington, DC. Atkinson, A. B., Rainwater, L. & Smeeding, T. M. (n.d.). Income distribution in OECD countries: The evidence from the Luxem- bourg income study (LIS). Unpublished paper presented at the American Economics Association, Boston, MA, 1994. Callis, R. R. (1993). Housing vacancies and homeownership annual statistics: 1992. U.S. Bureau of the Census, Current Housing Reports, Series H111/92-A, Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. Champernowne, D. G. (1974). A comparison ofmeasures of inequality of income distribution. Economic Journal, Vol. 84, December.

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Council of Economic Advisors. (1993). Economic report of the President: 1992, Washington, DC: United States Government Printing Office. Florida, R. L. (Ed.). (1986). Housing and the financial markets. Center for Urban Policy Research, Rutgers. Frumkin, N. (1992). Tracking America's economy(2nded.).New York: M.E. Sharpe. Kemeny, J. (1986). A critique of homeownership. In R. Bratt (Ed.), Critical Perspectives on Housing. Temple University Press. Masiello Issue Team on Neighborhoods and Housing. (1993). "The Masiello plan: Neighborhoods." Buffalo: Author. Mitchell, J. P. (1985). Historical overview of federal policy: Encouraging homeownership. In J. Paul Mitchell (Ed.), Federal housing policy & programs: Past and present, Rutgers: Center for Urban Policy Research. Schmidt, T. P. (1991). Trends in U.S. household wealth concentration, Unpublisheddoctoraldissertation,Universityof California, Riverside. Stegman, M. A. (1991). More housing, more fairly: Report of the twentieth century fund task force on affordable housing. New York: The Twentieth Century Fund Press. Stone, M. E. (1986). Housing and the dynamics of U.S. capitalism. In R. Bratt (Ed.), Critical perspectives on housing. Temple University Press. Struyk, R.J.(1977). Should government encourage homeownership? Washington, DC: The Urban Institute. U.S. Bureau of the Census. (1991). Money income of households, families, and persons in the United States: 1990 (Current Population Reports, Series P-60, No. 174). Washington, DC: U.S. Govern- ment Printing Office. U.S. Bureau of the Census. (1991). Homeownership trends in the 1980s (Current Housing Reports, Series H121-90-2). Washington, DC: U.S.Government Printing Office. U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. (1978). The 1978 HUD survey on the quality of community life, a data book. New York: Louis Harris Associates. Wolff, E. N. & Marley, M. (1989). Long-term trends in U.S. wealth inequality: Methodological issues and results. In R. Lipsey & H. Tice (Eds.), The measurement of saving, investment, and wealth, Studies of Income and Wealth, Vol. 52 (pp. 765-839). Chicago: Chicago University Press. 145 Page 140 Flood

PUBLIC SECTOR UNIONS AND THE CHANGING URBAN POLITICAL ECONOMY

Lawrence G. Flood State University College of New York at Buffalo

Recent attempt's to improve the quality of urban life have focused on several themes: taxes (too high), crime (too much) public education (failed), business climate (not friendly enough), privatization (away to lower taxes). Each of these themes and perspectives has a very special meaning for one group in the city: its public employees. Public workers provide the basic services which a city requires, and of course their salaries come from tax payers. But government employees and their unions are often excluded from the collaboration among those seeking to improve the city. Rather, they are commonly the scapegoats of urban critics, blamed for high taxes, failed services, municipal insolvency. Public workers are characterized as over-paid and over-benefited, but underworked, and their unions are considered simply stumbling blocks to needed change. In the words of M. Gottdiener (1994, p 275) "...declining cities are advised to muzzle militant unions and alter the values of municipal employees so that they can adjust to a more spartan life-style." And yet...as demands for tax and worker benefit reductionsare heard, so are demands for more and better services. Everyone turns to government in time of need. Caught in the middle is the public worker, expected to do more and better, with less and worse. Of course there are problems in the public sector, ranging from corruption to inefficiency. But the resolution of these difficulties, and the expected subsequent improvement in the quality of urban public life, requires that public workers and their unions be a part of the debate about what to do. They are informed, they are affected, they will be the ones to do the work. They may promote or resist change. This paper focuses on state and local public workers and their unions. It begins with a discussion of contrasting views of the nature of the urban problem, then provides brief analysis of several proposed responses, from a public union perspective. It concludes with thoughts 116 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 141 about the unions and the role they may play in reviving urban life in the United States.

Contrasting liews of the Urban Problem

American cities are profoundly affected by the restructuring of the global economy. New technologies,vast worker migrations, the increasingpower ofmultinationalcorporations,changesfrom manufacturing to service jobs and the declining power of unions have allshakenlocalpoliticaleconomies.With"freetrade"and multinationals in high favor, even national boundaries lose meaning. Aronowitz and DiFazio suggest that the "national governments by themselves can do next to nothing to overcome the new conditions of life and labor." (Aronowitz and DiFazio, 1994, p. 9) If that's true for national governments, imagine the problems .of local communities which find themselves trying to manage their inability to manage their problems. In the words of McEwan and Tabb, governments today are under "severe and contradictory pressures" to protect citizens while reducing government interventions. (McEwan and Tabb, 1991, 17) From these pressures arise two views of the urban problem of the 1990s, to be discussed below. Of course there are more than two views of the current urban situation. But for purposes of this discussion, two perspectives are outlined, one which largely blames the public sector (and thus its workers and unions) for the problems and the other of which recognizes public sector weaknesses but sees government as part of the solution rather than simply as the problem. a. the public sector is the problem While struggles concerning the role of government are a regular feature of American politics, for the past fifteen years the public sector has been the focus of especially intense controversy. A focussed attack on the public sector began in the late1970s, was broadly expanded during the Reagan-Bush years and may have reached its peak during the period of the "victory of the market over socialism" For Reagan, the primary source of America's economic and social problems was government: taxing, spending and regulating. Remove government,and

1 4 7 Page 142 Flood the economy and society wouldrecover. Further, government worker power was to be resisted, as the breaking of PATCO illustrated in dramatic fashion. The end of the Reagan-Bush Presidencies didnot stop attacks on the public sector, as several examplesmay suggest. In 1992 the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) provideda fifty-two state comparison of public and private incomes and concluded that public employees were receiving "excess income." (Coxand Brune lli, 1992) It described state and local workersas a "protected class." Shortly after the Clinton Administration took office the Institute forPolicy Innovation reported that all levels of government hadgrown "faster than the economy's ability to support them," with resultant highbureaucracy, low efficiency and poor economic growth.(Institute for Policy Innovation, nd) In a local case, when the Buffalo FinancialPlan Commission presenteditspublic-spirited five year plan to help government, its prime target was public workers, their salaries and benefits. Costs of government, it said, had to be reduced;open market practices were promoted. (Buffalo Financial Plan Commission,1993) Most recently, Leo Troy published his study of publicunions which concludes government has grown primarily because of thepower of public sector unions and theconsequence of the unions is municipal insolvency. (Troy, 1994) b. the public sector has a problem The above are simply examples ofa common general critique of government and public workers. This of course is a POLITICAL debate about democratic politics, markets, and unions. Inmy view critics of government and its workers have identifiedsome real problems (discussed below) but, for politicalreasons, have framed the debate incorrectly. For instance, the Buffalo Financial PlanCommission never even talked with pubic workers or their unions as they attemptedto "understand" the problem. And its critique ofgovernment spending was selective, excluding expenditures which promote business (forexample the expensive building of anew Hockey arena). The ALEC paper on "America's Protected Class" wasworse, according to an excellent rebuttal published by the Economic Policy Institute (Belmanand

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Heywood, 1993) ALEC presented statistical analysis withoutcontrols for relevant third variables thus ignoring thefact that compared to private workers public workers are older, have moreeducation and include more professionals. These are all factorsassociated with higher income. It didn't consider gender differences, which help accountfor a slight gap in pay for state workers: women in thepublic sector are paid somewhat more than women in the private sector. Itdidn't consider the increasing numbers of part time and temporary (andtherefore low benefit) workers in the private sector. Of course, there are real problems in the public sector.There are many inefficiencies associatedwith excessive paper work, service delivery systems often fail, tax burdens are not fairlyshared and the relation of tax to services is often not clear. In some casesthe public personnel system may reward or at least protect inefficiencyand a lack of cost consciousness. Government may be slow torespond to technologicalchange.Worksiterulesnegotiatedbylabor and management are often inflexible. These problems mustbe addressed, but in a context which recognizes certain positive aspectsof the current public sector. There is a high demand for public services. Education, parks, water and sewer systems, police and fire services are alldesired by urban citizens. Even those most critical of public workersrecognize these such as -public needs, although they may seek to fill them via solutions privatization. Secondly, urban workers need good jobs, andpublic jobs are in that category. Simply shuttingdown public jobs will lower the standard of living in the city by lowering worker pay andbenefits and by reducing tax income. Finally, the public sectoris essential to a healthy economy. Without a strong infrastructure, the economyfails. Without a social safety net, every recession is a depression.Without education, good jobs will not be attracted. Without regulation,the Savings and Loan fiasco is simply repeated. Somehow, forurban life to improve, we must confront the problems of governmentwithout eliminating the good it does. And without eliminating democracy.And without eliminating good jobs for public workers.

`1,49 Page 144 Flood

Responses to the Problem of Urban Governance

All sides propose responses to problems of urbangovernment. Most ideas have some merit, all have limitations. A conferencepaper is not the place for a full-scale analysis of each proposal, but forpurposes of discussion several current proposalsare briefly critiqued below. Each deserves, and has received, extended discussion elsewhere. a. privatization: no, but... The movement for privatization isa combination of pragmatic effort to save tax dollars and ideological oppositionto government. Privatization attracts support because it promisestwo results: more efficient, business-like service provision and lowercost. But it attracts opposition because the promises may not be fulfilled and becausethey include new costs and risks. Certainly, not every service orprogram found in local government can only be provided by government. Public unions must beopen to the possibility that some work could be done better elsewhereor even not done at all. But that is not an endorsement of wholesaleprivatization. The evidence suggests privatization has several criticalcosts and risks for local communities. Much of the recordedcost reduction comes from lower wage and benefit packages for workers.This of course lowers the standard of living of the entire community.Further, the private workforce is more likely to betemporary and/or part-time, and thus less skilled or less committed to the job. Also, othercosts go up, including: administrative costs for overseeingcontracts, equipment costs, second-contract high balling, new costs when private firms failto produce needed services. More generally, privatizationmay be a new source of corruption and it clearly reduces public accountability. And often privatization really just means the publicsector paying the private sector to produce a servicethe taxpayersare still paying, only now in a transfer to the private sector which works, of course, only while it is profitable to do so. b. reinventing government:yes, but... The National Performance Review, initiated byPresident Clinton and conducted by Vice-President Gorewas designed to explore the

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"reinvention" of government. It has spawned a movement to reform government at all levels. The movement rejects the anti-government, pro-privatization stance of recent Republican administrations, while insisting government must be more efficient, less costly and more responsive. Gore's Report on Reinventing Government (Gore, 1993) argues the issue is not what government does, but rather howit works. The root problem,itconcludes,isindustrial era bureaucracies attempting to be effective in an information age. The importance of this endeavor, for cities, is that the "reinvention" metaphor is also powerful in discussions of state and local changes. All levels of government and their employees are now debating cost-cutting, efficiency improvements and better treatment of clients. They arealso exploring more "empowerment" of public workers and less reliance on procedure and "red Evidence about the impact of reinvention on cities is not yet in, but suggestive information comes from the Brookings Institution's analysis of the NPR's first year accomplishments. (Kettl, 1994) Brookings concluded the NPR had produced "impressive results" and had proven to be "one of the most lively management reforms in American history." But from a worker perspective there were problems. "...[E]agerness for quick savings...led officials to shrink employment first and let the management improvements follow." Many workers saw this as one more explicit attack on their jobs and work. Reinvention (modernization, efficiency, responsiveness, worker empowerment) makes good sense for urban government. But if reinvention is simply downsizing and efficiency is just reduction of labor cost, government will not become more effective. Workers will be less satisfied and programs more poorly supported. This is a recipe for more failed government. Workers and their unions must be part of the process of reinvention, both because they have critical information and because participation will lead to support for change. This leads to a third approach to improvement of local government: new labor management relations.

1 5 1 Page 146 Flood c. cooperative labor-management relations: maybe The new labor-management (cooperative)relations must be approached with caution. Total Quality Management, Team Work and other approaches often prove to be participation without power for workers. Evidence suggests that TQM does not provide the promised improvements in productivity, and often serves simply as a management control tool. (Parker and Slaugher, 1993) Certainly efforts to produce more satisfying work, with decent benefits, pay and security as well as opportunities for promotion and learning will pay off in a more effective work force. But a focus on the worker, rather than on cooperation, will more likely lead to those results. d. business climates and smoke-stack chasing: no. Around the United States localities are in fierce competition with each other to attract new businesses. The goals make sense: bringing new jobs and new tax base to the community. But the means are costly. (Browning and Cooper,1993) Businesses force communities to compete to see which will give away the most, in tax benefits, direct costs for infrastructure, and eliminated regulations. While new jobs may be created, it is at the cost of community. Tax breaks, infrastructure costs and reductions in regulatory structure are not free, and urban communities feel the loses. (Federation for Industrial Retention and Renewal, 1993)

Union Responses

Public sector unions occupy a particular location. Their members produce the direct results of democracy that citizens expect. But they do this in an era in which the relationship between state andeconomy is restructuring. It is now necessary for the unions to develop theirown, progressive vision of the public and to pursue and defend it. Public unions must reach out, to clients and community and must focus in, to improvement in the quality and performance of government. a. support for good practice Unions can and must contribute to the improvement of public services. The Canadian National Union of Public and General

a52 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 147

Employees has an excellent document promoting such efforts.(Centre for Research on Work and Society, 1993) It focuses on severalneeds, including a better theoretical base for action, an expandedrole for worker input and attention to customer needs. Improvementin service delivery will require worker participation. As noted above,participation has two positive effects: it brings the workers' knowledge tobear on the problem and it brings worker commitment to problem solution. b. alliances. Begin with clients. They know about services and the benefitsof the public sector. And clients cross all boundaries: class, race,gender and age. Union-clientele partnerships help focus on the qualityand necessity of public goods and services produced. And in the processthe clients will educate public workers as to their needs andinterests. Additionally, public unions will become more effective through greater participation in union-community coalitions. These coalitionsoften serve clear public goals such as assistanceduring plant-closings, welfare rights and worker rights. Working with them will allow thepublic unions to educate community groups about the values a strongpublic sector.Finally, public unions must work with other unionsmost importantly they must work with each other. Politicians and managers often play the public unions against each other with the resultthat during periodic cut-backs unions may point to each others'members as the place to cut. Solidarity is essential. c. the legislative agenda Finally, public sector unions must continue to pursue their political- legislative agenda, at the state and especially the national level. On that agenda: principled resistance to privatization, critical participationin reinvention of government, expansion of bargaining rights for allpublic workers, rejection of simple tax and benefit giveaways to attract business and work with other unions for "fair" rather than "free"trade.

Conclusion

Michael Sorkin (1992) writes convincingly of the post-modem, privatized city as a theme park, a city oddly detached from place, space

153 Page 148 Flood

and pleasure. He contrasts this condition with the cityas a site for democracy, a place which provides the best expression ofa human desire for collectivity. Here is a role for the publicsector union. As it continuestomonitorthedetailsoforganizingandcontract administration it must also move to a higher political plain. The public union must confront the face and practice of the privatized and marketized city in defense of public values anda public sector. Sorkin argues the effort to reclaim the city is really the struggle for democracy itself. What better role for public unions?

References

AFL-CIO Public Employee Department. (1993). Public employees bargain for Excellence: A compendium of state public sector labor relations laws. Aronowitz, S., & Di Fazio, W. (1994). The jobless future. Minneapolis, Minnesota: University of Minnesota Press. Belman, D. & Haywood, J. (1993). The truth about public employees overpaidor underpaid.Washington, DC: Economic Policy Institute. Browning, E.S. & Cooper, H. (1993). States' biddingwar over Mercedes plant made for costly chase. Wall Street Journal, Al. Buffalo Financial Plan Commission. (1993). Fiveyear financial and management plan for the City of Buffalo. Draft, January. Federation for Industrial Retention and Renewal. (1993). NEWS, v.5 # 2, The great American giveaway: Workers and taxpayersare the losers in the state eat state civil war over jobs. Winter. Flood, L. (1991). Union-community relations in Buffalo. Buffalo Law Review, 39 (2) 445-471. Hood, L., Scheuerman, W., & Plotkin, S. (1995). Publicsector unions and the ideological struggle for the state. Article forthcoming in Flood, L. 1995. Unions and public policy. Greenwich, CT: Greenwood Press. Gore, A. (1993). The Gore report on reinventing government. NY: Times Books. Gottdiener, M. (1994) The social production of urbanspace. Austin, Texas: University of Texas Press, Second Edition.

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Institute for Policy Innovation. nd. America's No.1 growth industry is government. Press Release, available from the Institute, 214 -219- 0811. Johnston, P. (1988). The politics of public work: A comparative study of labor relations in the public sector. Dissertation. Johnston, P. (1994). Success while others fail: Social movement unionism and the public workplace, Ithaca, NY: ILR Press, Forthcoming. Mac Ewen, A., & Tabb, W., eds. (1991). Instability and change in the world economy. NY: Monthly Review Press. Parker, M., & Slaughter, J. (1993). Should the labor movement buy TQM? Journal of Organizational Change Management. Ritchie, S. (1993). State-local employment continues to grow. Rockefeller Institute of Government State, Fiscal Brief, November. Sawicky, M. (1991). The roots of the public sector fiscal crisis. Washington DC: Economic Policy Institute. Sorkin, M. ed. (1992). Variations on a theme park. NY: Noonday Press. State and Local Government Labor-Management Committee. (1993). Seeking excellence in state and local government: A symposium. Washington, DC. Troy, L. (1994). The new unionism and the new society: Public sector unions in the redistributive state. Fairfax, Virginia: George Mason Press.

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SMALL BUSINESS INCUBATION AS A TOOL FOR SUSTAINABLE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN INNER-CITY COMMUNITIES

Thomas S. Lyons, University of Louisville Gregg A. Lichtenstein, Ohio University Sumedha Chhatre, University of Louisville

The Current State of U.S. Inner-City Communities

Our metropolitaninner-citieshave undergonerapidsocial deterioration since the release of the Kenner Report in 1968. That report arrived at the conclusion that the chief causes of the racial disorder that erupted in the U.S. during the previous four summers were the exclusion of substantial numbers of blacks from the benefits of economic progress; the concentration of poor blacks in major cities; and the condemnation of blacks to the ghettos, where, the interaction of segregation and poverty resulted in limited opportunities for residents (Wilson, Aponte, Kirschenman & Wacquant 1988). Twenty years later,the problem of urban poverty has been exacerbated, and these same conditions remain as its chief cause (Wilson, Aponte, Kirschenman & Wacquant 1988). Many of these urban areas are proving to be breeding grounds for frustration, rage and hopelessness (Walters 1992). The most recent manifestation of this being the Los Angeles riots of 1992. The increasing concentration of urban poverty, and the changing nature of the ghetto have been paid little attention (Wilson, Aponte, Kirschenman & Wacquant 1988). More poor households now live in cities than ever before. Although the total number of urban poor is divided almost equally among blacks and whites, black poverty is much more concentrated.

The Changing Economy of the Inner-City

The decentralization of population and industry, accompanied by the shift to a service-based economy, has impacted the inner-cities in

156 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 151 two major ways. First, it has reduced the employment opportunities for inner-city residents. Second, it has caused a drain on resources and has led to a shrinking revenue base (Fusfeld and Bates 1984). Central cities have increasingly become centers of administration, finance, recreation, and other types of services (Fusfeld & Bates 1984). But the educational experience (or lack of it) of the majority of inner- city residents does not permit them to take advantage of these changing opportunities. Thus, the economic transition has left inner-city residents with very little choice in employment (Weiher 1989).

The Changing Social Organizing of the Inner-City

Two factors that have played an important role in the social disorganization of inner-city communities are the breakdown of the family structure and the flight of the black middle class. The breakdown of the black family is seen as a chief cause of the dissolution of the value system (Walters 1993). These days, ghetto residents are a different group altogether. They tend to be the most disadvantaged and oppressed segments of the urban black population. These include poor families relying on welfare; individuals who lack basic skills and face persistent unemployment; adults who no longer want to be part of the labor force; and those for whom crime is a means of survival in the underground economy (Wilson, Aponte, Kirschenman & Wacquant 1988). The impact of this social transformation of the inner-city is twofold. First, living in a neighborhood which consists of a socially disadvantaged population reduces available opportunities. Second, the social buffer that is created by the presence of stable working-and middle-class families acts as a shock absorber during periods of economic change. When such stable families desert the inner-city, this buffer disappears, and it is difficult to sustain basic institutions (Wilson, Aponte, Kirschenman & Wacquant 1988). There have been many federal programs aimed at rectifying the inner-city situation, among these, the Urban Renewal Program; the Model Cities Program; the Urban Development Action Grant Program; and Enterprise Zones. Page 152 Lyons et al.

The Current State of Black Enterprise

None of these federal programs have been successful in solving the economic development problems of the inner-city. This is, in large measure, because they have typically focused on leveraging outside investment in inner-city economies. Such investment is insensitive to the actual conditions and needs of inner-city residents and business people. It does not invest the people in their own economy. Rather, at best, it is externally superimposed on the underlying economy, and, at worst, it works to "colonize" the inner-city economy. As some have pointed out, 'parachuting' resources to the inner cities will not help (McCoy 1994). Community development is not an isolated activity. In recent years, scholars are concentrating on the concept of 'social capital' which will help address the issues of economic as well as social development (Putman 1993). The Clinton Administration has also offered a boost to the revitalization of inner-cities by stressing compliance with the Community Reinvestment Act of 1977 (Silverstein 1995). However, CRA is not without its share of critics who predict failure of such efforts for revitalizing inner-cities (Banks 1994). The concept that local business development can help revitalize low-income communities and enhance the opportunities for their residents has been a recurrent theme which has taken a variety of forms (Bendick and Egan 1991). Itis believed by many, that, successful entrepreneurship among inner-city residents can contribute to the reinvestment and revitalization of inner-city communities. What follows is a brief examination of the past (as well as the current) state of black enterprise in the U.S., followed by a discussion of why and how small business development can fuel inner-city development.

Background

Prior to the Civil war, blacks had monopolized services such as, cooking, cleaning and pressing, beauty parlors and barber shops, and shoe-shining in Southern cities (Fusfeld & Bates 1984). Over the years, an increasing black population gave rise to black proprietors who established restaurants, boardinghouses, groceries and grog shops.

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Following the abolition of slavery, the black business communitygrew slowly and according to the old models, which were eventually destroyedbychangeslikeindustrialization,immigration,etc. (Waldinger, Aldrich and Ward 1990). During World War I, a wave of black migration to the cities increased the potential for business in the ghetto. By the year 1920, black businesses were operating in many Southern, Western and Midwestern states (Fusfeld and Bates 1984). However, despite the growing opportunities offered by the ghetto, the dream of agroup economy was not fulfilled (Waldinger, Aldrich and Ward 1990). As a result of the unrest in the nation's black ghettos during the 1960s, the economic conditions of the ghettos received more attention. This helped to identify the economic development of the black community as a major policy concern. Access by blacks to business ownership, and assistance with mobilizing resources,were major concerns of the federal government. In 1965, lending programs for black entrepreneurs were started. President Nixon's announcement in 1968, of an effort to foster "black capitalism" was a great boost to the efforts of black business development( Waldinger, Aldrich and Ward,1990). Incentives to black business included loans and loan guarantees, provision of venture capital and technical assistance, and "set asides" for minority entrepreneurs (Waldinger, Aldrich and Ward 1990). Despite these efforts, the black business scenario has only mildly changed over the past two decades. Exploring thereasons for this underdevelopment of black business has been a major challenge to the experts. Explanations put forth include: a limited business tradition; the absence of protected markets; a restricted capacity to mobilize resources; and prejudice and discrimination by other members of the society resulting in obstructions to opportunity ( Waldinger, Aldrich and Ward 1990). The failure of policies to adapt to the sensitive nature of the black business sector, as well as to economic realities, is a major obstacle to black business development. This results in a vicious circle, retarding the further development of black businesses. The combination ofscarce entrepreneurial opportunities and discrimination in private employment

159 i. Page 154 Lyons et al. has resulted in more and more blacks having to rely on public sector employment (Waldinger, Aldrich and Ward 1990).

The Importance of Inner-City Black Enterprise

Over the years, the concept that local business development can help rejuvenate low-income communities and enhance opportunities for their residents has taken many forms (Benedick and Egan 1991). For the economicallydistressedinner-cityareasthatareplaguedby unemployment, underemployment, and labor force withdrawal among residents, reviving the local entrepreneurial spirit can be of considerable value. Firms with fewer than 500 employees constitute about half of the U.S. work force, and according to some studies, jobs created by the small firms account for two-thirds of all new jobs generated. Thus, new firms and smaller firms are an important source of job opportunities (Benedick and Egan 1991). Ironically, distressed inner-city areas are also typically characterized by low rates of new business formation and small business survival. Thus, it would appear that if new, small firms could be nurtured in inner-city areas, employment opportunities for residents would be enhanced (Benedick and Egan 1991). Racial and ethnic discrimination emphasizes the need to create job opportunities for inner-city residents within their communities. Though the extent of racial and ethnic discrimination in employment has declined over time, it has not disappeared completely. Given this fact, firms owned by minority members can help to provide employment to their own ethnic group. It has been observed that minority-owned firms tend to hire minorities at a higher rate than do other firms (Benedick and Egan 1991). Furthermore, the changing economy has generated opportunities which are mostly concentrated in suburban and exurban locations. These opportunities. are not accessible to some groups of inner-city residents, who would benefit the most from employment creation in the inner-city. Thus, another important criterion for successful employment

160 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 155 development in the inner-city is its physical accessibility to its residents (Benedick and Egan 1991). All of this would appear to suggest that economic development tools which have locally-based, sustainable enterprise as their focus might have the potential to impact inner-city communities. Small business incubation programs represent one such mechanism.

The Small Business Incubation Solution

An increasingly popular tool in the local economic development arena is small business incubation. The National Business Incubation Association (NBIA) estimates that in 1980 there were about fifteen incubation programs operating in North America, whereas today there are nearly 500. The most common manifestation of the business incubation concept is the small business incubator. An incubator is typically housed in a building that has been adapted for the purpose and provides a set of services to its tenant entrepreneurs, including: 1) flexible/affordable space; 2) shared business services; 3) management assistanceservices;4)financialassistanceservices; and 5)the opportunity to network with fellow incubator tenants (Lyons and Lichtenstein 1994). The focus of these services is to help the young firms operating within the incubator (its tenants) to overcome the three major obstacles to new business survival:1) poor management; 2) undercapitalization; and 3) the relatively high (for small firms) overhead costs of doing business (Lyons 1990). Small business incubation programs are found in a variety of contexts, with varying foci. Recent years have seen the proliferation of incubators in rural communities, for example. The use of this economic development tool is also growing in inner-city neighborhoods, where the focus is on assisting minority and disadvantaged entrepreneurs. Such incubation programs can be found in cities like Akron, Ohio and Gary, Indiana (National Business Incubation Association 1993). In Akron, Safe Harbor is a minority-based, urban incubation program that was developed by the East Akron Neighborhood Development Corporation to create and retain jobs for residents. Safe Harbor is both a "residential incubator" and an incubator-without-walls. 6 Page 156 Lyons et al.

It has ten tenants and has served as many as 120 clients in a single year. It has received its funding support from the State of Ohio's program aimed specifically at minority-based incubators, the City of Akron, and corporate and foundation grants. It also maintains a close affiliation with the state's Minority Contractors and Business Assistance Program, which supports Safe Harbor in offering technical assistance to its clients through accesstoprofessional resources and funding (National Business Incubation Association 1993). Safe Harbor is in the process of launching a micro-enterprise development program, which focuses exclusively on assisting minority firms with ten or fewer employees. Safe Harbor's goal is to achieve fmancial self-sufficiency,itself, allowing it to practice what it preaches to its clients (National Business Incubation Association 1993). Despite this growth in the use of small business incubation, in general, and in inner-city communities in particular, very little is known about the true efficacy of these programs. This is not to say that efforts to evaluate the effectiveness of incubation programs have not been undertaken. Several such studies are in existence and shed valuable light on incubation's contribution, to state and local economic development (Allen and Dougherty 1987; Campbell 1988; National Business IncubationAssociation1989;Lyons1990;Lichtenstein1992). Nevertheless, these studies tend to be limited in one of two major ways: 1) they are focused on a single function of business incubation programs (e.g.: management assistance or client networking), or 2) they employ traditional measures of effectiveness (such as number of new firms created; number of-jobs created; additional income contributed to the community's economy; etc.) that tell us something general about incubator output, but fail to accurately account for incubation program diversity. This latter deficiency is particularly troublesome because it treats all incubation programs as though they operate in the same context and have the same missions. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Rural incubation progjans, for example, must contend with the peculiarities of the rural environment in serving their clients. This means that they must tailor their practices (programs, operating procedures, etc.) to entrepreneurs who must face barriers to success such as small markets, 162 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 157 geographic isolation, limited access to professional services, and so forth (Lyons and Lichtenstein 1994). The goals and objectives of a rural incubator are aimed at helping rural entrepreneurs to overcome these specific barriers, and the incubator's practices mirror these goals and objectives. Given this reality, the most appropriate approach to assessing a rural incubation program's effectiveness is to determine whether or not its practices are successful in meeting the unique needs of its clients (Lyons and Lichtenstein 1994). To. judge a given incubation program by the number of new jobs it creates may be unfair if its goal, and resultant practices, are designed to aid the survival of small sustainable businesses. Yet, governments and other sources of support for business incubation programs tend to base their decisions on exactly this kind of general measure of economic development output. In reality, there are many ways that an incubation program can contribute to the development of its own unique economy, and these contributions may change during the lives of the incubator and its client firms. Thisevaluation dilemma impactsminority-based,inner-city business incubation programs in the same way thatit does rural programs. As was noted in the preceding section, the inner-city context presents its own unique set of barriers to entrepreneurship. That is, minority entrepreneurs face their own peculiar set of obstacles. Successful minority-based incubation programs must make ittheir mission to overcome these barriers and develop practices that will aid them in doing so. While these programs will, hopefully, create many new firms; generate many new jobs; and bring additional income to their communities, this may not happen immediately, or even in the first few years of the program's existence. This is not, however, an indication that the business incubation program is failing. In fact, it may be succeeding in such areas as identifying minority cottage industry operators and helping them to organize their businesses; linking minority businesses to large corporations as suppliers, when they are otherwise unable to gain recognition or access; assisting minority entrepreneurs in obtaining capital from non-traditional sources; and providing would-be minority entrepreneurs with the skills training necessary to taking on the challenge of starting a business. All of these

BEST COPY AVA1L BlIkG 3 Page 158 Lyons et al. are examples of prerequisites to successful minority entrepreneurship, and must be in place before jobs can be created and income gendrated. The following section describes in more detail the efforts of the West Philadelphia Enterprise Center, a business incubation program located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The focus is on the context withinwhichtheEnterpriseCenteroperates,thebarriersto entrepreneurship that context presents, and ways in which the incubation program approaches the mitigation of those barriers.

The Case of the West PhiladelphiaEnterprise Center

The West Philadelphia Enterprise Center (WPEC) is located in a primarily African-American neighborhood near the University of Pennsylvania campus. Its clients face three major barriers to their success: 1) they lack personal cash reserves; 2) they lack assets that could be used as collateral for obtaining loans; and 3) they lack entrepreneurial and business management skills. WPEC has adopted a mission that addresses these barriers and focuses on development of African-American enterprise by:1) increasing the number of entrepreneurs in the community; 2) increasing the number of localbusinesses; and 3)assistingclientswith entrepreneurial and business management skill-building. WPEC, a stand alone 501(C)3 not-for-profit organization, opened its doors in 1990. It operates both a 7,200 sq.ft. residential incubator and an affiliates program. In 1993, it had 21 active clients (14 of which were affiliates) from a fairly diverse set of industries (National Business Incubation Association 1993). WPEC is operated by a full-time manager and staff and hasan advisory board. This board, a volunteer group, provides the following forms of assistance to individual client firms: 1) review of existing business plans or assistance in developing a plan; 2) monthly, quarterly, and semi-annual reviews of operations vis a vis the business plan; 3) identification of a firm's resource needs; 4) assistance in identifying funding sources, both public and private; and 5) identification of advisory board expertise relevant to a firm's development.

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WPEC insists that its client firms report their progress on a regular basis (quarterly), largely as a mechanism to permit the incubation program to monitor the situation and adjust its assistance to the time- specific development needs of each individual firm. In an effort to fulfill its mission, WPEC asks applicants to identify, from a list of resources provided, the three that they most need. WPEC has minimum admission requirements for admission to its program. These include the completion of an application packet (including a business plan, if available); entrepreneurs' credentials; gross sales (if any); short term factors expected to affect the firm; funding needs; willingness to sell equity in the firm; and current assets and liabilities, among others. While the West Philadelphia Enterprise Center is only four years old, signs of success are already evident. It has a healthy group of clients, many of which show "great promise," according to the program's manager. The demand for its services is at a high. Requests for information from groups seeking to start similar operations have overwhelmed the staff. By traditional measures, the program has yet to truly produce. It has no graduating firms, to date, for example. Yet, progress has been, and continues to be made. The slow process of fostering a spirit of, and capacity for, entrepreneurship is underway.

Conclusions and Implications for Further Research

While small business incubation programs are not a panacea for the revitalization of inner-city communities, they do afford an innovative approach to economic development in these areas that holds promise. They provide a mechanism for coordinating a network of resource providers that can facilitate entrepreneurship in communities where enterprise is otherwise discouraged. They are a tool that can be molded to help minority entrepreneurs to overcome barriers to their success that are endemic to the contexts in which they operate. In doing so, incubation programs can create new small businesses and new jobs in communities, where little of this has otherwise taken place. They can create minority-owned firms in minority neighborhoods that are more likely to hire local employees and buy local services. In

1 6.5, Page 160 Lyons et al. thisway, they can assistina true reinvestmentininner-city communities. There is still much to learn about the actual impacts of minority- based incubation programs on their communities; about the intricacies of the barriers that inner-city minority entrepreneurs face; and about the incubation program practices that are most Successful in overcoming these barriers. This will require more detailed quantitative and qualitative analysis on several fronts.

References

Allen, D.N. and Dougherty, M.A. (1987). The business incubator industry in 1987. Athens, OH:National Business Incubation Association. Banks, H. (1994). Politics as usual. Forbes, Oct., 154:44-5. Benedick, M. Jr., and Egan, M.L. (1991). Business development in the inner-city: Enterprise with community links. New York: Commu- nity Development Research Center, Graduate School of Manage- ment and Urban Policy, New School for Social Research. Campbell, C. (1988). Change agents in the neweconomy: Business incubators and economic development. Minneapolis, MN: Hubert H.Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs. Fusfeld, D. R. and Bates, T. (1984). The politicaleconomy of the urban ghetto. Carbondale, IL: Southern Illinois University Press. Lichtenstein, G.A. (1992). The ecology of enterprisein a business incubator. Doctoral dissertation. Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. Lyons, T.S. (1990). Birthing economic development: How effectiveare michigan's business incubators? Athens, OH: National Business Incubation Association. Lyons, T.S. and Lichtenstein, G.A. (1994). New strategies in rural and small town business incubation: Example of successful practice. Small Town & Rural Planning, 14, 1:9-15. McCoy, F. (1994). Teaming up against urban poverty. Black Enterprise, Feb., 24:32. National Business Incubation Association. (1989). The state of the business incubation industry. Athens, OH: National Business Incubation Association. Putman, R,D. (1993). The prosperous community: Social capital and economic growth. Current, Oct., 356:4-9.

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Silverstein, K. (1995). Feds hammer out CRA changes. American City and County, Mar., 110:10. Waldinger, R., Aldrich, H., Ward, R. & Associates. (1990). Ethnic entrepreneurs: Immigrant business in industrial societies. New- bury, CA: Sage Publications. Walters, R. (1993). A strategy for redeveloping the black community. The Black Scholar, 23, 1:2-10. Weiher, G.R. (1989). Rumors of the demise of the urban crisis are greatly exaggerated. Journal of Urban Affairs, 11, 3:225-242. Wilson, W.J., Aponte, R., Kirschenman, J., & Wacquant, L. (1988). The ghetto underclass and the changing structure of urban poverty. In F. R. Harris and R. W. Wilkins (Eds). Quiet Riots: Race and Poverty in the United States. New York: Pantheon Books.

J Page 162 Moore

THE ROLE OF THE BLACK CHURCH IN CHANGING TIMES: EMPOWERING THE COMMUNITY FOR SURVIVAL

Sharon E. Moore Seton Hill College

The Black Church: An Historical Overview

As we approach the 21st century, the African-American community finds itself faced with a myriad of social, political and economic crises that can only be addressed through concerted efforts. Faced with alarmingly high rates of unemployment, school dropout, and death among its young male population, many within the African-American community are calling for the black church to come to the forefront to help ameliorate these circumstances. Lincoln & Mamiya (1990) define the black church as the black controlled independent denominations which make up the heart of black Christianity. The black church concerns the expressions of spirituality and the religious practices of African-Americans and includes church doctrine. It should be noted, as it is sometimes disregarded by European historians, that Africans, brought to this country under the system of slavery, came with a culture rich in spiritual and religious traditions and practices. Although it was not uncommon for blacks and whites to attend church services together in some parts of the South, because of the institution of racism blacks were often denied the opportunity for full and unrestrained participation in white dominated church services and affairs (Moore, 1991). As a result,in their quest for both independence from white authority and religious freedom, African- Americans began separate denominations and their own institution of worship. In essence, the black church became a symbol of freedom from white domination (McAdoo, 1990, Wingfield, 1988). The black church played a number of roles within the African- American community and began as a coping and survival mechanism during the period of enslavement of African people. The black church initially emerged as an "invisible institution," in essence, an informal

168 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 163 network among the slaves and played a major role during the abolitionist movement and the underground railroad (Moore, 1991). Aware of the slave owner's fear of a collective consciousness and the subsequent consequences of public gatherings, at the end of the day slaves often gathered in their cabins or in secluded areas to worship, sometimes keeping their voices barely audible. It allowed for the sharing of religious beliefs between African people who were diverse in regards to their former socio-economic status, language, customs and forms of religious expression. The black church served as a pseudo-family where blacks could be nurtured, feel accepted and worship within the context of their culture. It operated as a mutual aid and kinship network for the sharing of resources for economic survival, and it provided nurturing especially for those whose families had been separated by the slave owner for either economic or punitive reasons (Scott, 1989). It also provided the black community with a sense of hope. Worship services became a medium for the release of tension and discouragement, providing encouragement for hopes of freedom and a brighter day both in this world and in the world beyond. The era of U.S. transformation from an agricultural to an industrial based economy in part fostered the abolition of slavery as the need for certain types of black labor changed. This transformation did not, however, bring about a change in white racism and prejudice as evidenced by the "Jim Crow Laws" and "Black Codes" that were prevalent during and after the period of Reconstruction (Birchett, 1992). The black church now served a different yet similar role within the black community. The response of the church was different in that it now ministered to a people who were in theory free from forced labor but who were in practice still subject to the outgrowths of racism and discrimination, namely segregation and racial intimidation. Its role was similar to that played in its beginning in relation to the community's need for spiritual, emotional, psychological, physical and moral support. As a result, the black church became a buffer to African-Americans who migrated en masse from the south to northern and western states, only to fmd themselves facing overt discrimination,residential segregation, overcrowding and unemployment as they competed against Page 164 Moore

European immigrants for scarce resources (Birchett, 1992, Moore, 1991). Some discrepancies exist as to when the first black churchwas formally organized. According to Lincoln & Mamiya (1990), the first known formal black church was established in 1750. Other historians indicate that this occurred between 1773 and 1775 (Moore, 1991). By 1906 approximately 36,770 black churches were in existence witha total membership of over 3.5 million (Birchett, 1992). These churches provided social service functions and were responsible for the formation of African-American seminaries, black colleges and academies, insurance companies, banks and civilassociations, including the NAACP, and the civil rights movement of the sixties (Lincoln & Mamiya, 1990). What emerged was a powerful institution, second only in importance to the black family, which became the hub of black political activity, the medium through which blacks could address the dominant social order as well as relate to their deity through the cultural traditions of their heritage. From its initial beginnings the black church has grown to a membership of approximately 19 million individuals representing seven major and a host of minor denominations (Birchett, 1992). Hence, as a collective, this institution has an economic base, although exact figures are unavailable, and the political voice through the power of the vote to potentially take the forefront in addressing the needs of African-Americans.

Changing Times Within the African-American Community

Now let us turn our attention to some of the current challenges facing the black community and the church. There are a plethora of problems within the African-American community, and many of its members have called upon the black church to provide leadership for the task of empowering the community for survival. Life for the 20th century African-American can be viewed as an ongoing process of experiences many of which are often negative. There was an increase in poverty in the 1980's. The number of poor people in America increased by eight million between 1977 and 1987. Two million of those individuals were black; subsequently, approximately 86% of black

170 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 165 youth live in poverty (Hare, 1988). Compared to whites the chances of being poor are three times greater for blacks. Two major factors contributed to the rise in poverty. These are: first, the economic shift from an industrial to a high-technological and service society, with these newly created jobs located in suburban areas rather than in inner city areas; and second, during the Reagan administration the War onPoverty came to an end with the consequent reduction in public sector employment and educational opportunities (Hare, 1988). Of all black families, 37 percent are female headed (Taylor, 1994). The effects of growing up in poverty and without the presence of a father in the home may be far-reaching. The most ideal home situation is that of a strong stable family in which there are two parents. This type of home is most apt to meet the needs of the black adolescent that are necessary for healthy development such as physicaland emotional nurturing, discipline and spiritual growth. Although having an ideal home does not ensure a positive home environment nor individual outcome, not having a stable home environment appears more likely to place youth at risk for exposure to the kinds of "family instability and turmoil associated with deprivation" (Hare, 1988). They are more at risk for exposure to drugs, crime, poor mental and physical health. The 1986 dropout rate for black adolescents was 17.4 percent and only 50 percent of those dropouts who were heads of households, reported having any earning (Eldelman, 1989). Dropping out of high school has particular short-term and long-term consequences for this population. From an immediate standpoint, failing to complete their high school education places these youths at a disadvantage in providing for the essentials of daily living. In both the short and long-term, their potential earning power will be decreased and they will not have the credentialsthatarenecessaryforeducationalandeconomic advancement and competition in the job market (Gibbs, 1988). Racism and prejudice must also be considered as causal factors in the high school drop out rates. Despite civil rights initiatives, African- Americans still face many obstacles within the American educational system. For many African-Americans the American academic arenais one medium where the process of inferiorization occurs.This process occurs on several fronts. Both historically and presently, theeducational 171 Page 166 Moore curriculum to which black students have been exposed has been Eurocentric. Many black educators have viewed this `monocultural perspective' as oppressive and have called for the incorporation ofan Afrocentric perspective within the curriculum. This approach would incorporate black history and African culture, thus enabling students to have a true sense of their past and their potential, thereby fostering the development of character and self- respect. Many educators would agree that race pride is important in building self-esteem, which can foster academic achievement. Children "do better when theysee themselves in the curriculum" (Hacker, 1992). Unfortunately, this is an all too uncommon occurrence for black children. The national rate of unemployment among African-Americans is currently at 12.4% or over 31 million individuals (Funk & Wagnals, 1994). A numberoffactors,includingracism,employment discrimination and a major shift in the structure of job opportunities contribute to this incidence. During the 1980's the American industrial sector shifted from goods producing to trade and private services. The trade sector was one of slow growth and blacks are under-represented in the service sector (Larson, 1988). Subsequently, this contributed to black unemployment. This situation may have worsened because of the decrease in retail opportunities in the central cities, where many African-Americans live, and the increase in retail opportunities in suburbia which is mostly populated by whites. Second, is the decline of old industries and the development of new "high tech" industries. Blacks, who have traditionally been employed in certain industries, must now find employment opportunities in newly created industries. They often lack the skills required for the newly created high wage, high technological jobs. Drug use among the African-American population is damaging from both a social and health perspective. It is estimated that thereare approximately 23 million Americans who regularly use illicit drugs (Williams, 1988). There is increasing evidence that drugs and crimeare often related. Drug abuse/addiction eventually leads many individuals into activities that lead to further involvement with drugs and criminal activity.Drug-relatedactivitiesmay range fromtraffickingto prostitution in order to support a habit (Gibbs, 1984). These activities

172 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 167 not only increase the risk of HIV infection and AIDS but also the likelihood of incarceration. The social costs of drug use are great to the user, the family, peers, the community and society at large.Homicidal violence as a result of gang warfare has turned many of the nation's streets into battle zones. In New York alone, drug-related killings increased steadily from approximately 25 percent of all killings in the early 1980's to almost 40 percent in 1988, and homicides were up 65 percent in the nation's capital (Time, 1988). According to Conciatore (1989) black men make up approximately 6 percent of the U.S. population and nearly 46% of those incarcerated. Forty-two percent of all death row inmates are black. Further, homicide is the leading cause of death for black males between the ages of 15 and 24 (Strickland, 1989). The statistical data are somber. As gloomy as they are, however, they do not present the other part of the disaster: the effects on the black community. The fear engendered within the black community "saps the strength of the community and weakens its social fabric" (Brown, 1988). As businesses migrate to suburbia due in part to fear of victimization and in part for economic business reasons, black neighborhoodsarelefteconomicallyisolatedandstructurally abandoned, adding to the impact of the decay of the inner city.

Current Initiatives

In light of the African-American community's present experience with perilous socio-economic situations, the black church has been called upon to respond to these problems and is in a position to again be the leading force in providing assistance to the community. Itis estimated that between the seven major denominations there are approximately 19,000,000 members. These denominations include the: African Methodist Episcopal Church; African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church; National Baptist Convention, U.S.A., Inc.; Christian Methodist Episcopal Church; National Baptist Convention of America; Church of God in Christ and the Progressive National Baptist Convention(Adams, 1985). Lincoln(1984)estimatesthat approximately 70 percent of the African-American population hold church membership. In their 1984 nationwide study of 2,150 churches, 173 Page 168 Moore

Lincoln and Mamiya (1990) found that black youth makeup 26 percent of the membership and black men represented 18 percent. The size of the black church, although still overwhelmingly female, places it ina position to be a very influential and powerful catalyst for economic, political and social change within the African-American community and larger society. There is a broad range of initiatives presently being undertaken within the milieu of the African-American church bothon macro and micro levels. The Congress of National Black Churches,a collaborative effort between the seven major denominations, was established in 1978. Their agenda is concerned with institution building within the African- American community via social and economic programs which focus on insurance, banking and collective purchasing, among others. They provide parent education programs, pastoral counseling education and after-school tutorial and ethnic education programs directed at youth through a program called Project SPIRIT which is located in four major metropolitan areas (Lincoln & Mamiya, McAdoo, 1990). Other national coalitions include the Interdenominational Theological Center,a central center for training theologians, which combines the resources of six denominations and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference which began as an outgrowth of the civil rights movement. Numerous programs exist on the state and local level. These initiatives include literacy projects, rites of passageprograms, credit unions, personal care homes, food and clothing distributionprograms, pastoral private counseling services, tutorial and readingprograms, self- help and support groups such as teen pregnancy and parentinggroups; drug and alcohol groups; groups for gang members and parents ofgang member, voter registration projects and lay health advisory networks which serve as intermediaries between individuals and health and social services, just to name a few. Interestingly enough,as important and needed as these and other services are to the black community Lincoln & Mamiya found that 60 percent of the 1,531 pastors of rural and urban congregations surveyed in their study reported that "preaching"was their primary function with less than 5 percent of the pastors reporting that they viewed community leadership, visitation and fund raisingas top priorities. The author finds these statistics disheartening in light of

174 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 169 the tremendous authority and persuasive power afforded the African- American pulpit in regards to the development and empowerment of the African-American community that could result from clerical leadership.

Empowering the Community for Survival

EmpoweringtheAfrican-Americancommunityinvolvesa threefold process. It includes: 1) helping individuals to gain control over their personal lives; 2) helping individuals to conduct themselves in a manner that will afford them more positive and fruitful results; and 3) enabling both the individual and the community to secure the necessary resources andpossibilitiestobe instrumentalinenvironmental structuring and restructuring. Empowerment also involves the ability to act on one's behalf or to stop action from taking place (Staples, 1990). The process of empowerment is continuous. As situations and life circumstances change the individual, family and or community must be able to adapt to and impact upon changes within their milieu. The process does not entail empowering people but rather people are helped to empower themselves. African-Americansindividuallyandcollectivelyhavebeen relegated to a position of powerlessness by virtue of the socio-economic andpoliticalinfrastructureintheUnitedStates.Theyhave systematically been denied equal access to resources and have endured theinferiortreatmentofminoritystatus.Theconceptof majority/minority denotes a power vs. powerless situation with the majority group being in the position of power and the minority group having limited access to societal resources and opportunities. This arrangement has had very deleterious psychological, emotional and physical effects on the black community in terms of stress and stress- related disorders and mental health conditions that evolve as individuals attempt to cope with and sometimes internalize the concept of inferior status. The African-American community stillstruggles with such issues as the significance of variations in skin color and hair, intellectual competence in relation to whites and others, and a whole host of issues which consume both time and psychic energy which in turn detract the individual and community from focusing on more germane issues. 175 Page 170 Moore

What follows are suggestions for ways in which the black church can help the community to empower itself. This process may initially receive resistance from church leaders and members who fail tosee the role of the church as one of social activism. Empowering the black community is a protracted effort that will require a great deal of human and financial resources. ) Acollectiveconsciousnessamongandbetweenthe denominations.TheAfrican-Americancommunityisa heterogeneous mixture of people who share a common ancestry but who are diverse in terms of socio-economic, political, philosophical and theological perspectives. The author suggests that what is needed is a consensus between all of the denominations, both major and minor, regarding a social, political and economic agenda and the means by which this agendacan be achieved. As has been noted earlier there does exist acongress of the seven major African-American denominations which focuses on building institutions within the black community. The National Congress of Black Churches couldserve as a platform for such an agenda by drawing upon the philosophical diversity that exists within the community asa strength for program development. Theological differences do not necessarily have to mean philosophical divisions regardinga national black agenda. Via the congress, the administrative officers of each denomination should convene specifically to develop such an agenda. Once formulated, the community could be made aware of the national plan through church mediums, black controlled print and broadcast media, and through African- American organizations such as the N.A.A.C.P. and Urban League. Then every effort should then be made tomove the African-American community in the direction of the agenda.

2) A present world emphasis. Much emphasis has been givento people successfully making it to the world beyond, specifically, to Heaven. Traditionally, what has not been given much emphasis are such things that are necessary for African- Americans to live successful and productive lives in the present

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world. Such things being the attainment and retention of a healthy self-esteem and self-concept, an emphasis on education, consumer education, cooperative economics, andthe importance of the value of women beyond the domestic domain. Raising the black consciousness to these and many other issues will necessarily need to be addressed if the black community is to rise to a level of life that transcends mere survival. 3) A more proactive stance among and between the clergy. The church clergy are in a very advantageous position to empower the community considering the authority and social clout inherent with their positions. Every pastor, and where there exists ministerial support, should either develop and implement programs within their local church that focus onaddressing potential and existing problems within their community or avail their facility to be the medium through which existing programs may operate. Where there exists several churcheswithin one municipality or jurisdiction there should be collaborative efforts made to address several different issues. Each church could not only focus on combating one major issue or provide a specific service but could also become a conduit for linking its members and the community at large to existing community services and resources. 4) Increased outreach to non-church goers. According to Lincoln & Mamiya (1990) there is a growing number of non-church goers among the black middle class and urban poor.Tradition- ally, much of the church's' programming has served and benefited those who regularly attend church. More energy needs to be directed towards drawing in those individuals who are outside of church parameters with special attention being given to increasing the number of black males who participate in church and church related activities. Attracting black males to the church may involve surveying the community to become aware of both the needs and interests of this segmentof the population and then tailoring and designing programs, activities and services in light of their identified needs and interests.

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Many of these individuals could serve as positive role models within the community, through mentoring projects and rites of passage programs, and are potentially among those who will replace the dying church elders and carry forth the functions of this institution. A segment of the "unchurched," the urban poor, are also significantly represented among those who suffer from many of the. social ills that need to be addressed as the church strives to empower the African-American community, i.e., the unemployed, illiterate and those who have a history with the criminal justice system. Reaching many of these people may involve taking an outward focus and locating many church initiatives and activities directly within the areas populated by these segments of the community versus programming the activities to occur primarily within the confines of the local church. 5) Supplement the present American education system. Given the present focus on a Eurocentric curriculum within the American education system and the potentially damaging psychological effects to African-American children and adults of such indoctrination, the black church couldfirstmobilize the community, through the power of the vote, meetings with school district leaders and where necessary through protests (both economic and social) to challenge the lack of African based material and ensure the inclusion of such material within the curriculum. Second, and maybe of more importance, whether or not American schools incorporate Afrocentric material into their curriculum, the black church should promote and incorporate an Afrocentric perspective within worship and church programming. This can occur during the Sunday morning sermon, in Sunday school and Bible classes or by whatever forums the church has to provide the community with information, both Biblical and secular. This discussion may well begin by addressing what Lincoln & Mamiya (1990) found to be the lack of emphasis on Black Liberation Theology within the church. Primarily, increased emphasis needs to be given to the significance and contributions of Africans within both Biblical and 178 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 173

world history. Furthermore, attention needs to be given to the issue and impact of the use of white religious symbols within the black church (Mosley, 1987). The clergy should make every effort to speak to the issue of the white deity. This issue must be dealt with because of the far-reaching negative psychological consequences to the black community of worshiping, role modeling and internalizing a Christ and God whose symbolic representations mirror those of the oppressor group. 6) .Provision of employment opportunities. Although no statistics are available concerning the total net worth of the blackchurch one could only guess that a conservative figure wouldplace the yearly revenues generated by this institution, collectively, to be in the hundreds of millions of dollars. Hypothetically speaking, if all 19 million members of only the seven major denominations attended church each Sunday and give only one dollar per Sunday in offering a minimum of $912 million dollars would be generated annually. If two-thirds of that total went to salaries and administrative costs $304 million dollars would be left for programming, i.e. missions, Christian education, etc. The author suggests that surely some measures could be taken by the black church through the pooling of resources and the creation of employment opportunities to address the issue of the nearly 4 million African-Americans who are unemployed. Employment opportunities could be created in such industries as construction, banking, food service, transportation and hotel service through the creation of African-American businesses. African- American youth could be given employment opportunities through summer programs such as community beautification efforts which promote neighborhood and community pride as youth participate in activities that are designed to keep their communities clean. As an example of another source of employment, community gardens not only teach youth the art of gardening but promote self sufficiency and encourage entrepre- neurialship as the harvests are sold within the community. Through cooperative economics, the African-American community must make efforts to become9 self-sufficient by building Page 174 Moore

its own economic infrastructure thereby stopping the cycle of dependence upon resources outside of the community.

Implications for Social Work

There is an urgent need for African-Americans to: 1) collectively set a national agenda to address the problems facing its community; 2) develop strategies for meeting the agenda and 3) pool its resources for this purpose. The discipline of social work is concerned with the personal growth and well being of the individual, the family the community and the whole society. Through professional guidance, social workers attempt to help individuals, families and communities reach their desired level of self-actualization and thus not only developa sense of self-worth and self-pride, but also become productive and contributing members to their community and the wider society. Social workers can help the black church empower its community by: 1) helping the church to organize around the issues which it identifies that need to be addressed; 2) mobilizing the community for action; and 3) lobbying for the necessary resources. That this is an arduous task is at best an understatement.

Conclusion

The black church has played a vital role within the African- American community. It has been a major source of strength for African-Americans and has provided community resource, particularly during harsh political and socio-economic climates. The black church has served as a political platform and as a catalyst for social change and empowerment and continues to be the major supporting institution within the community in regards to many of the problems thatare presently being faced by African-Americans. Although there aremany excellent initiatives in place within the church thatare aimed at addressing the socio-economic and politicalissues and resulting problems that blacks are grappling with the author cannotover- emphasize_ the need for a collective consciousness and a spirit of cooperationbetweenandwithintheindividualchurchesand

180 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 175 denominations which make up the black church. The extent towhich people will reach their full potential, families will be madewhole, and the African-American community will experience a reductionin many of the ills that presently plague it will in large measure depend uponthe fostering and continuation of a cooperative spiritwithin its own community and within the church.

References

Abatso, G. & Abatso, Y. (1991). How to equip theAfrican-American family:Issues and guidelinesforbuildingstrongfamilies. Chicago, IL: Urban Ministries. Adams, J.H. (1985). Stewardship and the black church.Urban League Review, 9(1), 72-77. Birchett, C. (Ed.). (1992). Biblical strategies for a communityin crisis: What African Americans can do. Chicago, IL: Urban Ministries. Brown, L.P. (1988). Crime in the black community. The stateof black America, 1988. New York, NY: The National Urban League. Conciatore, J. (1989). Prisons devouring multitude of young black males. Black Issues in Higher Education, 6(12). Funk & Wagnals. (1994). The 1994 World Almanac. Mahawah, NJ. Gibbs, J.T. (1988). Young black males in America: Endangered,embittered and embattled. Mass: Auburn Publishing Co. Hacker, A. (1992). Two nations: Black and white, separate,hostile, unequal. New York, NY: McMillan. Hare, B.R. (1988). Black youth at risk. The state of black America,1988. New York, NY: National Urban League. Larson, T.E. (1988). Employment and unemployment of youngblack males. In J.T. Gibbs, A. F. Brunswick, M.E. Connor, R. Dembo,T.E. Larson, & B. Solomon. (Eds.), Young, black and male inAmerica 12(1-2), 83-90, MA: Auburn House. Lincoln, C.E., & Mamiya, L.H. (1990). The black church in theAfrican American experience. Durham, SC: Duke University Press. Logan, S. M., Freeman, E., & Mc Roy, R. (1990). Social workpractice with black families: A culturally specific perspective. White Plains, NY: Longman. McAdoo, H, & Crawford, V. (1990). The black church and family support programs. Prevention in Human Services,9(1), 193-203.

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Moore,T.(1991).The African-AmericanChurch: A sourceof empowerment, mutual help, and social change. Prevention in Human Services, 10(1), 147-167. Mosley, W. (1987). What color was Jesus? Chicago, IL:African American Images. Mukenge, I.R. (1983). The black church in urban America:A case study in political economy. Lanham, MD: University Press. Scott, J.W., Black, A. Deep structures of AfricanAmerican family life: Female and male kin networks. The Western Journalof Black Studies, 12(1), pp. 17-23. Smith, A. (1988). Responsibility of the African-Americanchurch as a source of support for adolescent fathers. The Urban League Review, 12(1-2), pg. 83-90 Staples, L.H. (1990). Powerful ideas about empowerment. Administration.in Social Work, 14(2), 29-42. Strickland, W. (1989). The future of blackmen. Essence (November), pp. 51-116. Taylor, R.L. (1994). Minority families in the United States:A multicultural perspective. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall. Tower, K.D. (1994). Consumer-centered social work practice:Restoring client self-determination. Social Work, 39(2), 191-196. Williams, S., & Wright, D. (1992). Empowerment: Thestrengths of black families revisited. Journal of Multicultural Social Work,2(4), 23- 36. Williams, J. (ed.). (1980). The state of black America,1980. New York, NY: National Urban League. Wingfield, H.L. (1988). The church and blacks in America.The Western Journal of Black Studies, 12(3), 127-133.

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VALUES AS AN INTERVENING VARIABLE IN THE COMMISSION OF CRIME: A CALL FOR THE COLLABORATION OF SYSTEMS

Barbara Huddleston-Mattai State University College of New York at Buffalo

Introduction

According to FBI statistics, during the first six months of 1993 crime decreased nationally by 4% (Lacayo, 1994). While true that most crime is on the downswing, the general population tends to view crime relatively. Therefore individuals may not feel relieved that the murder rate, for example, is lower than it was three years ago; their alarm may be a response to the facts that it is twice that of three decades earlier and that violent crime in general has risen more than 23% over the past ten years (Lacayo, 1994). People's alarm is further exacerbatedby the nature of the crimes and by the feeling that no one and no place is safe. In an effort to gain and feel some sense of control, sociologists, psychologists,socialworkersandothersconcernedwiththe phenomenon have directed much energy toward trying to understand the causes of crime. This search for answers has been a continuous endeavor and the ranges of explanations have been varied. One explanation has linked crime to biological factors (Bohman, Cloninger, Sigvardsson, & von-Knorring,1982; Bohman, Cloninger,von - Knorring, & Sigvardsson, 1984; Baker, Mack, Moffit, & Mednick, 1989; Cloninger,Sigvardsson, Bohman, & von-Knorring,1982; Gabriel li & Mednick, 1983; Mednick, Gabriel li, & Hutchings, 1984; Rushton, Russell, & Wells, 1985). The general conclusion of these studies has been that criminal behavior and activities are related to some genetic predisposition. Even in those situations where environmental factors were given some credence, genetic makeup was still viewed as having substantial influence. The fmdings of the biological proponents have been challenged and refuted by researchers who contend that environmental factors can and must not be negated in such explanations. For example, McCord (1991)

X83 Page 178 Huddleston-Mattai argues that other elements are present in those situations where sons of criminals are more likely to become criminals than the sons of non- criminals. She found that parental conflict and the existence of at least one aggressive parent were mediating variables. Other researchers have contended with previous biological findings by highlighting the shortcomings of these studies. Campbell, Muncer, & Bibel (1987) refute some of the findings of the studies by pointing out that they have procedural flaws extensive enough to make the conclusions, at best, questionable. Ellis (1987) demonstrates that situational variables can not be denied. In addition to environmental explanations, social/psychological expositions have been purported. As early as 1938, Robert Merton (Jacoby, 1979, chap. 21) theorized that aberrant behavior may be the result of arriving at a self or group perceived, expedient means for acquiring a much desired end. This end is societally induced and reinforced. Thus the ends justify the means, albeit because the "legitimate" means are not readily available to the individual. Wright's work (1971) concurs with that of Merton. Cohen (Jacoby, 1979, chap. 24) adds the dimension of people becoming involved in criminal activity for the sheer pleasure it brings, the pleasure that comes from going against the grain, defying the laws of society. Other social/psychologists like Cloward and Ohlin (Jacoby, 1979, chap. 27), assert that criminal behavior results from "differential social organization" which is a consequence of individuals having more intimate relationships and experiences with those who are involved in criminal activities. Similarly, Denno (1985) states that delinquency is due to a lack of behavioral control. This lack of control may be related to the influence of others within one's intimate circle. Within a similar context, Oliver (1989) proposes that deviant behavior may be the result of a redefinition of one's gender role. Using black males as examples, he states that because they have been economically disenfranchised and socially oppressed, black men have not been able to adopt or incorporate the traditional male role definition of protector and provider. As an ego defense, they have instead overtly emphasized another trait to compensate for a perceived weakness. Thus one aspect of manhood, as defined by the black male may be toughness.

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Violence and criminal activities become avenues fordemonstrating one's toughness and one's maleness. Se llin (Jacoby, 1979, chap. 22) proposes yet anothersociological view by contending that conflicts between cultures canresult in a redefinition of codes whereby criminal activity is legitimized.Anderson (1994) espouses the theories of Sellin, as well as thoseof Cohen and Oliver, as stated above. He found that there is a street culturewherein unique codes of behavior exist, inclusive of the legitimationof violence and criminal activities. In addition to the above explanations, criminal behaviorhas been attributed to values. As early as 1942, Shaw and McKay (Jacoby,1979, chap. 23) purported that variation in crime reflects differencesin values, norms, and attitudes. They furtherspeculated that in many areas of high crime, children particularly are in close contact with those who espouse crime as a career, as well as the criminal way of life. Acriminal lifestyle represents a competing way of life, especially wherethe legitimate opportunities for success are sparse. Whether or not one adheres tothis way of life is dependent upon the cogencyof the attitudes and values of those with whom the person has most intimate contact and uponthe extent of the exposure to the social controlmechanisms. Oliver (1989) enhances this theory through his suggestion that changing one'svalue system can change one's behavior. It is to the last of the above concepts that this paper isaddressed. It is the contention of this writer that although valueshave been considered as an intervening factor in crime commission, theirinfluence has not been considered to the degree or extent to whichthey are involved in the decision to commit or not to commit a criminal act. Itis proposed here that they are a major influence. Further proposedis the idea that the values concept is a common thread that runsthroughout most explanations of criminal behavior (with theexception of biological ones), although the relationship may not be explicit. All of thefactors that have been delineated as influencing criminal behavior areaffected somewhat by the values the individual holds. Regardless of one's status, position, or condition in life, it is a personal and individual decision as to what action s/he will take or how s/he willchoose to respond in any given situation: if a person steals, in the final analysis, thatdecision was 185 Page 180 Huddleston-Mattai made by the individual, perhaps influenced byothers or situational circumstances, but still made by that individual. Thesame holds true in other criminal acts (with the exception of thoseacts which were committed under force and threats of harm). It is being positedhere that values form and lie at the basis of decisions regarding whetheror not to commit a criminal act.

The Framework

Codes that govern behavior are value based. Thusan individual behaves based on thevalueshe/sheholds.Values/moralsare individually, group, societally, and culturally defined (Wright,1971); consequently, all of these elements actas reinforcers and pressures toward conformity. The acquisition of these codesinvolves a psychological process of incorporation and internalization. Thefirst source of an individual's values and codes is perhaps one's parentsor the parental figures who serveas models. Wright (1971) and McCord (1991) indicate that the parents' methods of dealing withtransgressions and the atmosphere they create for the child influence thedevelopment and content of the conscience and therefore the concomitantrules for behavior. Other noted theorists (Baumrind, 1978;Power & Reimer, 1978; Kolberg, 1978) concur thatan understanding of human behavior necessitates knowledge of the moralnorms of the individual's reference group and the person's internalization of attitudes relative to those norms. Further, these must be situationally examined. Thus,a key to understanding individual behavior is to studya person's values and the values held by those with whom he/she has close associationor those within his/her intimate circle. One aspect then ofan individual's incorporation of values is how parents impart those values.It follows that if parents correct children in an atmosphere of aggressionand hostility, which the child perceives to be relatedor directed toward his/her very being, the consequence will bea child who gets some sense of the error of her/his ways butcan not internalize the sense of wrong doing because to do so negates her/his perception ofself as a worth- while human being. Therefore all must be rejected in favorof a view that subjugates the world and elevates self. This elevation ofself is

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situationally defined. Within an environment where self is elevated by means such as the consensus and feedback from the group with which one consistently interacts, then whatever the group values becomes the person's values; to adopt these values gives the individual a sense of belonging and caring and consequently self-esteem. Societal values must also be examined in conjunction with the rewards and outcomes of adherence to those values. Gaus (1990) has stated that some values are not embraced by many persons because they can not be publicly justified; it is not a morality that is reasonable to all. Additionally, they may not be embraced because they are not clear and do not advance the values of all society's members (Wright, 1971). It has also been shown that values may not be embraced because the means prescribed for achieving them and the rewards for attainment and adherence to them are not available to all members of society. These realities, among other factors, have caused an erosion of certain values. For example, the work ethic has been eroded by the demands of a mass consumption economy and personal survival (Lasche, 1979). Self achievement has lost its intrinsic value and has been consumed by the measuring of one's personal achievement against those of others. Hence, we have seen a shifting of the value structure of American society and some persons have consequently tailored their coping response. For example, work is a societal value, the ideal behind which is that if one works hard enough, s/he can achieve her/his desires through sanctioned, legitimate means and therefore can feel good in the process. However, many individuals live daily with family members, friends, and others who work hard every day, are still unable to accomplish their goals, and are miserable. On the other hand, they also see daily individuals who do not work so hard and who have all the societal accoutrements of success and they appear to be quite satisfied with their lives. The rules for success, although appearing to be confusing, are really quite clear: following the rules does not have the same outcome for everyone. Consequently, each person must find his/her way to success. What has emerged, then, is a number of individuals who feel that they have not received their just rewards; criminal behaviors become a protest against what they perceive to be unfair treatment and a 187 Page 182 Huddleston-Mattai justification for ,receiving, by whatever means, what criminals believe are their rights. In addition, since the means for achieving societal values have not been accorded to all, many individuals have developed feelings of inferiority as a result and may cope by finding avenues through which self-esteem is increased. Thus an individual may seek self esteem by instilling fear in those with whom s/he comes in contact. He/she may gain a reputation for him/herself through callousness and insensitivity. Based on many of these and other factors, some persons have developed a counter culture with its own values, codes of behavior, and rules for living, such as the one discovered by Anderson (1994) known as the "street culture." He found that being granted the respect one perceives s/he deserves is at the heart of this culture. It is one that legitimizes violence and thus endorses violence and criminal activities as cultural values. Because there is an alienation from mainstream culture and lack of faith in society's institutions and organizations, the individual assumes personal responsibility for her/his safety and comportment. It is the individual then who must make a personal decision about the best means for accomplishing this end. The person makes an individual decision, based on personal values, about how s/he will survive and relate to the world. Although these values may be the result of life experiences, the individual interprets these experiences, gives meaning to them, and thus decides how he/she will incorporate them into his/her life's schema. Other explanations of why individuals behave in a specific manner have included the capacity for self restraint, susceptibility to the attraction of the temptation, intelligence, dependency upon the good opinion of others, group loyalty, the nature of the incentive, whether others are present or not when the crime is to take place, and the probability of others learning what happened (Wright, 1971). In addition to these, the individual is influenced by whether or not he/she likes the person that was harmed, whether the act was considered retributive or not, and by the meaning the incident/situation has for the perpetrator. The interdependence of all these explanations and their relationship to values have been captured in the words of Longress (1990) who states that moral decision-making calls for the individual to:

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...first gather information on the situation and the others init and interpret the situation in terms of how a proposed action would affect the welfare of others. Then the person must formulate a moral course of action identifying the competing ideals which might be realized in response to the situation. (p. 481) Based on the assumed truth of this statement, then criminal behavior can be viewed as a personal, individualized process with the result being based on the person's value/belief system. An individual attaches him/herself to a group because he/she feels a sense of belonging and self worth through membership in the group. The group values preservation for its members and achievement of goals by the most expedient means. This person views society as the adversary because its rewards have not been equally obtainable nor granted to all. In addition, the individual perceives that s/he can beat society at its own game because he/she will amass those goods that society views as symbols of success, but will do it quicker and easier than those who work hard and have nothing. This method becomes a challenge and an incentive. In the process, s/he will gamer the envy and admiration of others through his/her ability to "get over" in addition to his/her ability to accomplish these goals without being detected. By viewing society as the enemy, there is a void of guilt feelings because the person is just getting what s/he rightly deserved. The person(s) harmed may be impersonalized by viewing him/her as a symbol of the society which has treated the perpetrator unfairly.

Conclusion

It has been proposed here that it is one's value systems that guide behavior. Further it is purported that although this value system may be mediated by various factors, in the final analysis, it is an individual and personal decision as to what behavior one will exhibit. For example, if the person is faced with a decision of whether or not to commit any criminal act, that person must individually decide if he or she will follow through. Reaching a decision usually involves a mental process of self talk that includes evaluating the situation, coming to terms with Page 184 Huddleston-Mattai feelings surrounding it, and then proceeding with an action based on this exploration (Longress, 1990). If indeed this is the case, then it follows that one avenue for intervention and influence lies in the individual's value/belief system. In order to change the outcome of this cognitive process, in those who are criminally minded, there must be an internalization of different values, ones that place premiums on human life, respect for others and their property, respect and care for self in relation to others, and loving oneself, not according to the evaluations of others, but rather based on a self-determined scale. All of the institutions in society must be involved. A natural beginning is with the family because it is within this arena that children experience their first feelings, are reinforced for their first behaviors (either positively or negatively), view their first models of behavior, and obtain their beginning understanding of the world. How families respond and interact depend on their perceptions of the world in relationship to themselves. It is difficult for family heads to have a positive world view and pass it on to members of the family if their basic needs are not met as a minimum. Parents. particularly, must have economic sufficiency and stability. Those who have worries concerning adequate food, clothing, shelter, health care, and safety may expend much or most of their energies on trying to meet those needs and find themselves deplete of energy for childrearing. Parents' response to such realities may be, at best, sporadic parenting or, at worse, withdrawal or detachment from the parenting role (Anderson, 1994). The children in these families find substitute families or adopt ways of living that are outside the norms, inclusive of violence. It is therefore within the best interest of all society to strive for economic and social parity for all persons. The influence of a strong, warm, loving family and the discipline it can provide have been shown to have a positive impact on children's moral development (Anderson, 1994; Lasche, 1978; McCord, 1991). We must lobby against political and social policies that are punitive toward economically disenfranchised families and lobby for those that strengthen and stabilize family life. Familiesthatfunctioneffectivelytend tocreateeffectively functioning communities. These groups of people can provide some scrutiny and exercise some control over individual behavior and can

0 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 185 also contribute to one's sense of personal status (Jacoby, 1979) thereby creating an increased sense of self with the concomitant outcome of a more positive value system. Schools, churches, and other societal organizations and institutions have a role to play. It is also through these mechanisms that values are imparted and self-esteem is enhanced. A successful school or other organizational experience with a caring individual can help a person feel valued and thus to emerge from the situation with a more positive, trusting self and world view. It may be within these places that the individual will be exposed to a different way of seeing things. This process may result in the adoption of different values or may aid in grasping an understanding of the relationship that one value has to another (Nunokawa, 1965). Hopefully, he/she may come to see that values to which there is no commitment have implications for values to which there is commitment. For example, the person may begin to understand that one human life is valued only to the extent that all human life is valued; no one is safe unless all are safe. It is particularly crucial that teachers and others who work with children be taught to understand and appreciate various students and children, especially those who are different from themselves. They can and do have a strong impact on young minds and efforts toward positive value formation must begin as early as possible. They must be taught to find students' strengths and build on them. This includes not just relating to students in the conventional teacher-pupil manner, but rather entering the child's world and trying to understand the child's world view. The evaluation of teachers should include examining their ability to do so. For students who feel alienated from mainstream culture, Oliver (1989) has proposed the adoption of an Afrocentric perspective, i.e. to: know oneself through the study of the African and African American history, to be proud of being black and to internalize definitions of adulthood that associate maturity with one's contributiontothe mental and political liberation of black people (p. 260). This perspective must be incorporated into the curriculum. For some other students, what may be needed is a tie to an alternative Page 186 Huddleston-Mattai culture that promotes positive behavior patterns. It may be a culture that aligns individuals more closely with their ethnic background or one that satisfies some other unique needs. The "just say no" movement is an example of an organization that has established an alternative value system. Other groups have religious foundations. The possibilities are limitless and the positive impact of such efforts are also limitless. Succinctly, we must connect children to caring organizations and/or individuals whereby values that enhance the dignity and well being of all persons and the betterment of society for all persons will be imparted.

References

Anderson, E. (1994). The code of the streets. The Atlantic Monthly, 273(5), 81-94. Baker, L.A., Mack, W., Moffitt,T.E., & Mednick, S.(1989). Sex differencesinproperty crime in a Danish adoption cohort. Behavior Genetics, 19(3), 355-370. Baumrind, D. (1978). A dialectical materialist perspective on knowing reality. New Directions for Child Development, 2. Bohman, M., Cloninger, C.R., Sigvardsson, S., & vov-Knorring, A.L. (1982). Predisposition to petty criminality in Swedish adoptees: I. Genetic and environmental heterogeneity. Archives of General Psychiatry, 39(11), 1233-1241. Bohman, M., Cloninger, C.R., von-Knorring, A.L., & Sigvardsson, S. (1984). An adoption study of somatoform disorders: III. Cross- fostering analysis and genetic relationship to alcoholism and criminality. Archives of General Psychiatry, 41(9), 872-878. Cloninger, C.R., Sigvardsson, S., Bohman, M., & von-Knorring, A.L. (1982). Predisposition to petty criminality in Swedish adoptees: II. Cross-fostering analysis of gene-environment interaction. Archives of General Psychiatry, 39(11), 1242-1247. Denno, D. (1985). Sociological and human development explanations of crime: Conflict or consensus? Criminology, 23(4), 711-741. Gabrielli, W.F., & Mednick, S.A. (1983). Genetic correlates of criminal behavior: Implications for research, attribution, and prevention. American Behavioral Scientist, 27(1), 59-74. Gaus, G.F.(1990).Value and justification. New York: Cambridge University Press

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Jacob, J.E. (Ed.). (1979). Classics in criminology. Illinois:Moore Publishing Co. Kolberg, L. (1978). Revisions in theory and practice of moral development. Dimensions for Child Development, 2, 83-88. Lacayo, R. (1994, February 7). Lock em up! Time, 51-53. Lasch, C. (1978). The culture of narcissism. New York: W.W. Norton & Co. Longress, J.F. (1990). Human behavior in the social environment. Illinois: F.E. Peacock. Lowenstein, L. L. (1991, July). The psychological understanding of crime. Contemporary Review, 259(1506) 27-33. McCord, J. (1991). The cycle of crime socialization practices. The Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology, 82(1), 211-228. Mednick, S.A., Gabriel li, W.F., & Hutchings, B. (1984). Genetic influences in criminal convictions: Evidence from an adoption cohort. Science, 224(4651), 891-894. Nunokawa, W.D. (Ed.). (1965). Human values and abnormal behavior. Illinois: Scott, Foresman & Co. Oliver, W. (1989). Sexual conquest and patterns of black-on-black violence: A structural-cultural perspective. Violence and Victims, 4(4),257- 273. Power, C., & Reimer, J. (1978). Moral atmosphere: An educational bridge between judgement andaction. New DirectionsforChild Development, 2. Rishton, J.P., Russell, R.J., & Wells, P.A. (1985). Personality and genetic similarity theory. Journal of Social and Biological Structures, 8(1), 63-86. Wright, D. (1971). The psychology of moral behavior. Maryland: Penguin Books.

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THE URBAN NEIGHBORHOOD COLLECTIVE: A MODEL FOR EMPOWERMENT THROUGH SPACE WITHIN THE INNER-CITY LANDSCAPE

A. David Nieves Binghamton University

Introduction

At the conference of the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture in 1994, "The Urban Scene and the History of the Future," academicians assembled to hear keynote speaker Rem Koolhaas. The thrust of his address was his discussion of EuraLille in northern France and other urban interventions. Koolhaas sees the new trend towards urbanism as the "salvation of architecture." A few other speakers also called for a "sympathetic reconsideration of modern design precepts," and one said, "after all, architecture was not to blame for Pruitt-Igoe" (Voiner, 1994, p. 16). As a student of architecture and anthropology, I have several reservations about the claims made at this conference. I feel that it is a mistake to say that modern architecture was not to blame for the destruction of Pruitt-Igoe when architectural planning was one factor that led to the demise of that particular housing project. Similar forces led to the proposed demolition of Cabrini-Green in Chicago, Illinois, and the demolition of the Christopher Columbus Homes in Newark, New Jersey. The main reason for these demolitions is a misunderstanding on the part of planners, architects, sociologists, city officials, and countless others of the needs in housing that will help foster a sense of community and belonging among inner-city residents. The thrust of my discussion is to make the point that we can no longer assume as designers what is appropriate for a community we are unfamiliar with. Architecture is inherently a part of society and culture; it cannot be merely some mechanistically repetitive system of forms that does not allow for individuals' appropriation of space. The design of our inner-cities, historically, has been either one of Corbusian "towers in the park" or the American dream house model as popularized by developer William Levitt. The term, "New Urbanists," coined by

I 9, 4 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 189 followers of Andres Duany and Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk, has made a mark on our approaches to the design of the public and private realm for ourcities.CitiesacrosstheU.S.havewitnessedtheover- suburbanization of the downtown city space, cities like Atlanta, Dallas, Syracuse, and the South Bronx. Architectural historians, like Vmcent Scully, praise Duany and Plater-Zyberk for turning their attention to the design of suburbs and making them viable communities, but they note that cities are still being largely ignored (Katz, 1994, p. 221). We must be aware that the "American Dream" model is not for everyone. The alternatives are few for the inner-city and a re-examination of the American inner-city is therefore necessary. Unlike any other part of the American city, the American inner-city most clearly delineates itself in terms of space and social qualities. The communitiesoftheinner-cityareusuallymade up ofthe disenfranchised members of society who most clearly need new solutions to the problems imposed by modern architecture. Inner-city communities are expressive of a local culture and heritage maintained even after attempts to sanitize and assimilate inner-city people into a limited ideal. This assimilation through space has eaten away at the sense of the individual and his commitment to the collective. It is my belief that certain elements of inner-city life have remained intact and are important ways of reappropriating space by inhabitants as a way to alleviate some of the social conditions imposed by "dominant class" models of space making. The high rise and the suburban ranch-style home are spatialimpositions created by majority-oriented urban planners and are promoted by visual media as the only viable alternatives to inner city life. But these designs do not work with the elements of the inner-city; they try to destroy them. I hope to make clear the importance of the street to urban life, and how, if we look at other models for space making, we can restore some of the environmental qualities critical to inner-city inhabitants. The street has become the only fragment of inner-city life that has been maintained and appropriated as a way to claim physical and social space, a space not imposed by any planner or architect. The street is an urban element important to inner-city life and a factor that until recently has been ignored, by designers. The street, although viewed negatively

1.95 Page 190 Nieves by the middle class, is a place unaffected by spatial impositions where self-expression lives. Graffiti, temporary shelters, and public gardens have become expressive symbols of a culture that has not had its own way of claiming and delineating its own space. Quite possibly if we had understood the street as one element within inner-city culture, we would have never had to destroy the Christopher Columbus Homes and Cabrini Green. The community I am most interested in analyzing is the African- American community in the inner-cities of the U.S. For the African- American, urban renewal in the United States destroyed the inner-city, making vast wastelands and separating families who lived and worked in collective communities. Today, this community is being again alienated by the dominant class with the advancing technology of the super-info highway and the over-suburbanization of the city.It is important to ask if we learned anything from the riots of the 1960s, a cry by those members of our society who felt victimized and abandoned by the government. Did we learn anything from the L.A. riots in 1992? Are we waiting for the riots of the year 2020 to begin to make change? The riots in Los Angeles were the reaction of a community that has been not only socially isolated, but spatially isolated as well. It is no longer possible to look only toward society and its mismanagement of affairs for the blame. As architects and those concerned with the urban environment we must finally begin to answer for some of the design and planning decisions made in haste and in poor judgment over the years, decisions that supported the assimilation of the inner-city into the dominant culture. Looking back historically to the turn of the century, to the 1930s, and again to the 1960s, did we not look at what were called "slums" and want to change them into "suburbs"? Weren't we incapable of seeing the inner-city as viable communities that only needed to be understood on their own spatial and social terms? We have run out of alternatives to look at here in the U.S. and must begin to look at applicable solutions that are derived from other societies and conveyable to the inner-city environment. The best place to do that for an African-American community is towards Africa, not in a primitivistic way, but to look at social models which have a direct impact on the built environment. In essence, we should be crossing

196 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 191 boundaries between disciplines, between ways of thinking, and crossing boundaries between societies that can learn lessons from each other. Historical Models The question that must be addressed is: what meaning does the built environment have for the inhabitants and the users, or the public or, more correctly, the various publics, since meanings, like the environments that communicate them, are culture specific and hence culturally viable (Rapoport, 1982, p. 21). Both Frank Lloyd Wright and Le Corbusier contributed to a fundamental shift from a collective view of society, inherently found in urban sub-cultures, to an increased respect for individual independence (Speck, 1989, p.114). The futurist definition, stemming from modernist ideals for the city, greatly influenced the debate over the physical nature of the city. The Futurist Manifesto became in essence a pattern book for city planning. At the same time a large influx of "new" immigrants left a mark on the American landscape, particularly on the growth of cities, that many feel are the causes of our social ills. The American city was based on successive waves of immigration, even before the arrival of the southern and eastern European immigrant. The city was created as a series of transformations composed of and based on northern European models of city planning. Today, many historians question the influence of those European models on the formation of a coherent American architecture based on traditional forms. Several questions remain unanswered. One question is whether those members of the urban sub-culture did indeed have an architecture that socially and physically met their needs before, during, or even after the influence of the dominant Protestant culture on the "new" immigrant built American landscape. Many areaswithinthese immigrant communities served very special and specific needs, such as the local marketplace. Local marketplaces, like those found in ethnic European communities, were unique characteristics that were somehow lost. These elements of an already established architecture by inner-city groups might have given way to an American tradition based on a combination of American and Southern European principles. Instead, in the history of the American inner-city, we find definite markers of an

197 Page 192 Nieves ethnic landscape that have been systematically destroyed over time, though never completely wiped out. For example, small community grocery stores that become the locus of community news and resources harken back to local marketplaces. The physical remnants of the past may not be clearly visible in the inner-city but the manner in which social customs affect spatial patterns within the ethnic landscape do in fact influence the physical nature of the city at various levels. The attitudes, values, and beliefs of the suppressed culture are expressed differently in terms of architecture and society than in the larger American dominant landscape. The signs of an ethnic urban collective were seen in the strength that held together the family, at that time expressed physically, as in the African-American church. Urban renewal, in an attempt to adjust the landscape for those considered less fortunate, only diminished a sense of belonging physically. The dwellers in a slum area are almost a separate race of people, with different values, aspirations and ways of living....Most people who live in slums have no views on their environment at all ...When we are dealing with people who have no initiative or civic pride, the task, surely, is to break up such groupings, even though the people seem tobesatisfiedwiththeirmiserable environment and seem to enjoy an extrovert social life in their own locality (Wilson, 1991, p. 100). These attitudes held by planners in the twentieth century sought to separate and divide folks in and from slum areas. Town planning was seen as a way to alleviate, both socially and physically, many of the problems that existed in the inner-city. Gambling, street entertainment, prostitution, and unlicensed trading were all seen as results of social and economic inequality. Those who lived in the inner-city were seen, by planners, as groups of people who had chosen to live in a manner that was at odds with contemporary society. At the time, contemporary upper class society believed in self-reliance; ethnic groups believed in the strength of the community. If we examine historical patterns of community, in this case American and African, we may be able to see where things have gone

198 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 193 wrong for inner-city inhabitants in the United States and how through empowerment they can be positioned for a renewed sense of self-worth. In order to understand the current situation in the American urban landscape and suggest alternatives, we must assess the correlation between the physical form of the inner-city and the aspirations of the people living there. In the 1960s, twenty-five percent of black families were headed by women. Today the number has more than doubled; some sixty-two percent of black families with children are headed by women. In the 1950s the patterns of black and white marriages were similar in terms of the number of children being born into a stable economic environment. A surprising change has occurred over some thirty years; today the number of children being born into poverty are predominantly black or Hispanic living in the inner-city (Ingrassia, 1993, p. 18). These statistics seem to indicate that the inner-city family structure is an inherently matriarchal structure, similar to the matriarchal spatial structure of contemporary African cities. However, the similarity goes beyond a matriarchal spatial structure; other similarities exist between the two because of a breakdown of the family, where mothers are left to raise the children for great parts of the day and are responsible for their complete care. The black nuclear family should be preserved, whether here or in Africa, but if black families are structurally matriarchal, a need arises for supportive small-scale community social structures. Now that we have established some basic understanding of neighborhood development in the United States, we should look to another country anditsverydifferent approach tothe urban neighborhood. By looking at the African city we can in fact trace a development that responds to the past and present, through the women and children for a concrete experience of tomorrow. Looking towards Africa, we may be able to provide some alternativesfor the disappearing ethnic landscape within our own inner cities. A model for supportive small-scale community structures may be based on the African compound.

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An African Model The African compound, in Ghana, has boundaries that define both the physical realm and the social. These spatial boundaries vary in length of time, according to usage, and from one person to the next, according to age and position in society ( Pellow, 1992, p. 190). The functions that occur within the compound and the sense of attachment to place are unique when discussing the typology of the compound. The compound becomes the central player in the lives of women, for it is through the compound that they perceive the urban life of the city as a representation of themselves. The compound reflects the blurring between public and private in Africa. The connection between the blurring of public and private in our own inner-cities and those in Africa is important because it correlates with an African-American perception of the street and social networks. Social networking in the compound is crucial to both the inhabitant and the larger community. A sense of group membership is fostered when the individual feels a sense of security and is recognized as part of a social system (Pel low, 1992, p.192). For example, Zongo Lane becomes the center of monetary exchange as a business in Accra, but is also a central meeting place for Muslim men who feel a certain sense of attachment to the area for social and religious reasons. Some of these men will travel from the "suburb" of Darkuman, some 40 minutes away by tro-tro (bus), in order to take part in the urban neighborhood to which they belong. The traditional housing areas like that of Atupai, in Jamestown within Ghana's capitol city, are intensely developed with predominantly single-story detached structures of rendered block or stone and corrugated iron roof sheeting. Areas are delineated not by the larger network of main roads and streets, but by smaller community-made alleys that make up a family section, or quarter. These small quarters most closely resemble villages. The exteriors to the compounds are made up of these small alleys converging on one point. The space made by these alleys becomes a centralized fireplace for a particular family. The fireplace acts as the center of activity for the family, as cooking, eating, socializing, and trading all take place in the vicinity of this area. The local chief's compound, along with the compounds of several 200 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 195

family members, exists within close proximity of one another and the fire. Atupai is just one quarter in a series of small quarters within the Abola district. Seven distinct districts make up Jamestown. The districts are difficult to define spatially except that each contains a chief's compound, a small market or local store front, the compound of a minor priest from the traditional religion, and a community gathering place located at the base or near the chief's palace. A district is in itself made up of these various compound types. For women, the courtyard of the compound becomes the "... living area of the house; it is there that arbitrations occur, cooking is done, children play, stories are told and family celebrations and funerals are held " (Pe llow, 1992, p. 193). The courtyard is an extension of domestic space; it is where many household tasks like cooking, eating, doing laundry, and the bathing of children are conducted. The yard is divided spatially into primary and secondary territories that relate to social interaction. These divisions are not physical; the women are apparently aware of their space and its boundaries. Peter Marris (1962) in "The Meaning of Slums and Patterns of Change" defines the urban neighborhood in Africa as " ... the centre of small scale commerce, a nub of trading activities...and through its courtyards [is] ramified a network of family relationships sustaining an intricate exchange of mutual support" (p. 421). In his study of Lagos, Nigeria, Marris describes the vitality of the urban neighborhood based on trade. Merchants, distributors, hawkers, and entrepreneurs make up the population of inner-city inhabitants who base their livelihood on trade. The central issue in his study is that of housing, which the government controls and which perpetuates the squalid conditions of the urban poor by maintaining commercial interests in close proximity to housing (Marris, 1962, p. 422). The inhabitants do not have control of their environment or their livelihood and are forced by outside interests to remain helpless. He writes:

...if people have security of tenure, a viable small-scale economy based on their own resources, and a well- integrated structure of social relationships, then they should be able to assimilate advice and resources, both

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collectively and individually, in a gradual process of improvement (Marris, 1962, p. 428). Marris (1962) points out the similarities in the condition of the urban poor both in Lagos and in New York or Detroit (p. 424). The similarities among these three cities exist at a social level which informs the physical space of the inner-city. The control of physical space economically held by the government, private citizens, and corporate powers makes the inner-city victim to decisions made by those completely unaware or unable to relate to its problems. Economic controls make shifts of activity possible from one to another, often leaving some communities who relied on a particular industry for example, unable to sustain themselves. As discussed earlier, the compound or home, themarketplace, andstreetinan urban neighborhood are central to the community, affected by many outside forces unless deeply structured socially by the community. The street becomes a critical factor when we examine the character of the urban neighborhood in the United States, today and some forty years ago. The streetis in fact the place where women define themselves in the inner-city and establish community. The street is not only composed of civic and residential places, but also social places such as the corner grocery store, with men sitting out front, and the stoop, with families and friends sitting together, both of which begin to activate the street. The qualities that the street expresses are not only a vibrancy in activity but also in visual activity. The street becomes marked not only by the names at its crossings, but by the kinds of places that are named for activities that define place. Within the urban setting today, though, the street is no longer a place for social activity, but a place of loosely-clefmed edges and boundaries. In Syracuse, for example, the street edge has been pulled back in an effort to suburbanize the inner-city with grassy patches located in front of low income housing units. People no longer gather at the local market for fear of being shot in gang or drug-related violence. The stoops where mothers and their children sat on hot summer days no longer exist. The few fragments that remain of an ethnic landscape are abandoned schools, churches, and playgrounds that go empty all year

202 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 197 round and become temporary spots for crack dealing and shelters for the homeless. The street, the market, and a sense of home are now only recognized by a few families who struggle to keep long-term loosely defined social networks alive as families continue to break up in the inner city. Pierre Bourdieu (1972) in his Outline of a Theory of Practice posits the notion that social networks cannot exist without a physical sense of place. Socially and physically, it is impossible to define place by separating the two. An attachment to place begins through a cognitive memory of an event that happened, one in which an emotion or feeling becomes associated with that place. If a certain lack of attachment to a place exists, then it is impossible to define the space through memory (Bourdieu, 1972).

Conclusion

Women in the inner-city finditdifficult to establish place attachment when all they can think about is the kind of hardship they must endure from day to day. If women cannot invest a certain level of association with a place, then it does not become a part of their social sphere in space. Architecture, by establishing a place that is for women and their children, and reflective of the kind of environment they feel is appropriate and safe, can foster community. The place defined by women then enters their social network as a protected and empowering place. Women and children are the primary inhabitants of our inner-cities, here in the United States and in Ghana. The ability of women to create viable working communities within a patriarchal spatial ordering can begin to provide us with solutions for creating a sense of place within our inner-city environments. Throughout much of this study the issues surroundingtheurbanizationofcitieshavebeenaddressed. Urbanization and industrialization have left a mark on cities that cannot be erased. The mark thatis most clearly definable in terms of physicality is the ghettoization of the city into two distinct socio- economic areas. The dominant class holds control and power over the downtown and its outlying suburbs, while the underclass is left with the

203 Page 198 Nieves edges between the city and its suburbs. The question that remains is whether or not these edges can be defined in terms of both the needs of the community it serves, predominantly women, and still be a vital and significant contributor to the larger city as a whole. The very basic principles of community, based on interaction and involvement, have become difficult to promote when the environment is under constant social, physical, and economic upheavals. In Africa, we have seen the establishment of workable communities created by and for women as a means to claim significance and place attachment through space. The compound and its construction of social space provide the vehicle for empowerment of women and their children. That is not to say that women are not being oppressed by the patriarchy that defines their society. The women are oppressed, but they manage to create their own sense of community within those constraints. The lessons that can be learned from these African women by women in the American inner-city, particularly single mothers, are the catalysts for change and reform. A remedy is never easy to find. American and African models have been closely examined and their qualities discussed. The compound or home, the street, and the market are mutually related components of a city that provide the framework for a new inner-city model. All three models depend highly on the kinds of social networks established by the collective. The constant dilemma that arises in this discussion of models for women in the inner-city, here in the United States, is that only some of the problems can be remedied through an appropriate architecture. Architecture alone cannot provide the solutions, as it is simply one piece in a complex series of social, political, and economic layers created throughout history. The only way to tackle these issues is to provide the bestsettingsthatfosteropportunitiesforsociallydirected improvements. By looking historically and architecturally at definitions of community in Africa and the United States, an attempt has been made here at shedding light on how community can be generated. Through looking at both the individual and the collective definition of community, which are so closely related, a definition of a place can be derived. 204 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 199

References

Bourdieu, P. (1972). Outline of a theory of practice. New York: Cambridge University Press. Ingrassia, M. (1993, August). Endangered family. Newsweek, pp. 16-27. Katz, P. (1994). The new urbanism: Toward an architecture of community. New York: McGraw-Hill, Inc. Marris, P. (1962). Family and social change in an African city. London: Northwestern University Press. Pellow, D. (1992). Spaces that teach: Attachment to the African compound. Place Attachment. New York: Plenum Press. Rapoport, A. (1982). The meaning of the built environment. Beverly Hills: Sage Publications Speck, L. W. (1989). The individual and the city. Center: A Journal for ArchitectureinAmerica. New York:Rizzo liInternational Publications, Inc. Voiner, T. (1994, August). Today's urban thinking: Salvation or silliness? Progressive Architecture. Wilson, E. (1991). The sphinx in the city. Los Angeles: University of California Press.

205 Page 200 Davis

YOUTH VIOLENCE AND THE CHANGING FAMILY: A STUDY OF FAMILY BACKGROUND FACTORS

Eddie Davis State University College of New York at Buffalo

Introduction and Overview

The traditional American family system conceptualized in the literature and projected as prototype for mainstream society has undergone massive changes in recent history (Lasch, 1980; Giele, 1984; Wilson,1992). Many of the changes are associated with, and consequential of, radical socio-economic shifts and rapid technological developments (Ferman, et al, 1969, p. 539; Naisbitt and Aburdene, 1990).Today,significantelementsofchild-rearingauthority traditionally belonging to families have been delegated to public sector agents and institutions: "in many ways the schools had, still have, the transferred power of the parent, and they recognize little law but their own regulations" (Time, December 25, 1972, p. 42). However, the old "... middle class model of the nuclear family is still strong in people's minds althoughitdoes not representthemajorityof family arrangements" (Giele, 1984, p. 17). Other conditions formerly thought to be matters sacred to the family, now necessitate regulative social policies that further undermine "the traditional American family." Giele (1984) observes that: Rising health care costs and a larger aging population, the emancipation of women, and the deinstitutionalization of the ill and retarded have produced social pressures on families that require a new kind of public response. The forces are larger than any one single family created or can handle alone (p. 18). So, it appears that there are documented rationales for delegating portions of family responsibilities outside the nuclear family not all; but are those rationale well-grounded? The sanctity of the private family with the complexity of its internal relations and it relationship to public institutions has been reversed. The 20.6., FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 201 public sector now retains the "legal authority" over previously private child-rearing practices of "the family." The parental unit, traditionally charged with socializing its young, is left with the care and feeding and public debt responsibilities of their offspring (Haynes, 1994, pp. 64-65) while "the State" determine the method of socializing them. In short, parents are left in the impossible predicament of being biologically and economically responsible for their offspring, but without the authority to discipline them without fear of State intervention.

Social Choices and Social Shifts

The divestment of the family of its child-rearing powers reflects social choices about the family which are carried out in the political arena. The product of those choices produce well-intentioned child protective laws that functionally separate child-rearing authority from child care responsibilities. In the long run "(t)he challenge will be to define rights (of the child) in a way that expands the child's protection against abuse without undermining the psychic benefits of parental authority" (Time, December 25, 1972, p. 42). For upper-middle, middle-middle and lower-middle class families, child-rearing choices are often aggressively delegated to agents external of the family (e.g., private agencies, independent entrepreneurs, and group contractors, Pre-K day-care centers and nannies). Such initiatives serve to protect the authority of the parents while delegating the duties of child-rearing to extra-familial units. It is the parental authority of lesser advantaged families (low- income, poor and single-parent) that bear the brunt of the coercive politically driven public sector agencies and institutions that monitor child-rearing practices. It is this latter population that is most vulnerable to social policy changes and socio-political shifts that undermine child- rearing authority. Increasingly, the traditional American family is being alienated from the "Ideal-type Family Form." It expends huge amounts of energy and economic resources reacting to external encroachment of social, political and economic forces. Today's family survives in a chronic Pavlovian-like state of Stimulus-Response (S-R) defense against the

2.0'( Page 202 Davis political environment: it is at the mercy of impersonal technology, insensitive politicians and rapidsocial change. Such chronically unstable conditions of survival contribute to increased alienation from commitment to the family unit by both parents and children. In the final analysis, authority to act on juvenile and youth social problems, formerly the province of parents and the family, now rest in the hands of the public sector: social agencies, law enforcement, civil servants and elected officials. Child-rearing (i.e.,disciplining and socializing) no longer rests with the family.Itis now a part of mainstream society and the political arena. When public sector authority is extended to the family and its child- rearing processes, there can be only one outcome: standardization of child-rearing in a diverse society. The impact of such policies exacerbate factors already impinging on family life (e.g., liberal divorce laws, two-paycheck parents, and externalized identity) and contributes to further alienation from family commitments. Under such conditions both parents and offspring become alienated from the family (Wooden, 1976, pp. 82-83) and develop other compensatory modes of meeting needs previously provided by authoritative parental direction. Under-socialization and alienation from the family are two major factors contributing to the incipient violent youth phenomenon currently sweeping the country. For example, an overwhelming majority of the participants in the 'Youth Violence' study were searching for factors generally associated with inner-directed identities derived from strong family socialization. These identity and personality qualities were driving forces in the commission of violent crimes (i.e.,respect, acceptance, self-esteem) for participants in our study.

Youth Violence Study

The basic concepts, ideas and analyses outlined in this article are derived from the data of an exploratory study of youth violence.This was an 'action research' study conducted with twenty (N=20) youth between the ages of thirteen (13) and seventeen (17).The study was conducted in the then sixth largest metropolitan city.All subjects in the study were previously adjudicated for acts of violence that included

2'08 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 203 murder, attempted murder, armed assault, and assault with intent to commit great bodily harm. While the sample is small its size is not inconsistent with previous studies of violent youth and youth who kill (Smith, 1965; King, 1974; Russell, 1974; Sendl & Blomgren, 1975; Corder, et al, 1976; Sorrells, 1977).Findingsfromthestudysuggestasomewhat changed stereotypicalprofile of "theviolent youth," and his/her family background.For example, the participants in this study were not all from abject poverty, broken homes and uneducated parents.As a matter-of- fact the overwhelming majority of the participants came from parents who either hadcompleted high school or college. The big picture of this sample suggests a history requiring multi- level intervention strategies.However, such intervention with the violent youths cannot be isolated from intervention with family systems (Fromm, 1964; Aronson, 1965; May, 1972).The process of intervention must addresstheviolentaspectof youths'behavior from a phenomenological perspective (Hoffman, 1985; Zinsmeister, 1990; Ten, 1990; Witkin, et al, 1991) as well as from the context bound (family, gang, etc) perspective. For example, some youth commit violent acts to compensate for something they feel missing in their personal identity, while others commit violent acts for cathartic reasons. Such violence is independent of the family or intimate relational contexts, but also are not acts of violence for profit. Frequently, there is little, if any, remorse on the part of the perpetrator (Zinsmeister, 1990).

Design and Methodology

This study was designed to be exploratory and descriptive. The primary goals of the study were twofold: one, to explore family backgrounds of adjudicated violent youth; and two, to test the fit of Toch's (1969) typology of violent men with characteristics of violent youth discovered in the study (Davis & Beverly, 1991). We wanted to discover, from the perpetrator's perspective, the motivation of youth to resort to violence as a first response solution to a problem. For individual subjects, we wanted to discover what factors were involved 2 9 Page 204 Davis

in moving him/her to commit his/her particular violent act(s). The family background picture emerged serendipitously. The instrument was divided into three parts: 1) demographic data, 2) family background and 3) typology questions. It was administered to each participant by the primary investigator or the project's trained student assistant. Each interview lasted from one and one-half to two hours. Every precaution was taken to insure confidentiality during the interview, and to maintain it afterwards. The completed instrumentsare in the author's possession. The subjects were drawn from a grant-supported not-for-profit youth residential treatment center. Each subject strictly met the criteria described in the problem statement: 1) between the ages of thirteen and seventeen; 2) having committed a violent crime as defined by police use; and 3) were in post adjudication status (serving time, aka, being treated).

Findings

The mean age of the subjects in the study was sixteenyears (16). Seventy percent (70%) of the subjects reported theoccurrence of their particular act of violence between the ages of 15 and 16. Initially, the data suggested that there were a variety of factors involved in the broad 'trend among youth' to elect violence as a problem-solver. Some of those factors were consistent with Toch's (1969) theory of compensatory violence. There were also a number of family background factors that support long held stereotypes of delinquent and violent youths. For example, a majority of the sample, 65% (N=13) reported having been reared by their mothers while 20% (N=4) were reared by both parents, and 10% and 5% (N=2 and N=1) respectively were reared by their fathers and grandmother. Contrary to the popular notion that violent youths come from low- income and uneducated family backgrounds, 90% (N=18) of the youths in this study came from families with high school diplomas and above (See Table 1).

210 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 205

Table 1 Family Education (N=20) Education Completed Frequency Percent Less than high school 2 10.0%

High school diploma 7 35.0%

Technical School 2 10.0%

Some College 3 15.0%

College 6 : 30.0%

Total 20 100%

Even this small sample presented a bi- modal ..picture and suggested maybe education in the family background is no longer the mitigating influence against youth violence it was previously thought to be. Additional study on the educational backgrounds of parents of violent youth is needed. However, the study did raise some old questions with new implications. For example, are children from educated family backgrounds (and all that that implies) left unsupervised more often than children from lesser educated families? What role does disciplining play? Another factor frequently pointed to as contributing to violent behavior in youth is family income. Table 2 shows the family income of the subjects in this study:

211. Page 206 Davis

Table 2 Family Income (N=20)

Family Income Frequency Percentage Public Assistance 5 25.0%

$l1-$15,000 1 5%

$16 $20,000 4 20.0%

$21,000 plus 9 45.0%

No Response 1 5.0%

Total 20 100%

While the family income of the subjects in this study does not reflect solid middle-class incomes they are not incomes of abject poverty. (The federal government still defines the poverty level as being $15,000 for a family of four). Any attempt to correlate family education and family income with youth violence would be a mistake. However, what doesemerge is a pattern pointing away from the regularly scapegoated low-income, public assistance supported families. For this small study, the data shows that the majority of subjects came from families with high school or higher education including college completion (30%), not on public assistance, and earned incomes above the poverty level. The data in Table 3 shows an increase in violence among these youths as we move up the income scale, with the overwhelming incidents of physical assault being committed by youths from families in the higher income groups (see Table 3 below):

212 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 207

Table 3 Type of Offense Committed (N=20)

Offense $11 - $16 - $21,000 + Percentage $15,000 $20,001) Murder 0 1 1 10.0%

Attempted Murder 1 1 0 10.0%

Armed Assault 0 1 5.0%

Armed Robbery 0 0 1 5.0%

Physical Assault 3 2 7 65.0%

Refused to say 1 0 10.0%

Totals 6 (30.0%) 5 (25.0%) 9 (45.0%)

Additional analysis of the data showed that 65% of the sample's fathers and 20% of mothers derived their income from 'bluecollar' employment. At the same time 10% of mothers and 5% of fathers' incomes were from professional sources. Again, worthy of note, was the fact that 55% of primary family wage earners were mothers. In a larger sample these data may prove to be insignificant, but in thisstudy it suggested that we may be witnessing a changing picture of the families of violent youth. It is also suggestive of a need for further studyand analysis.

The Changing Ideal Model of Family

The notion of a stereotypical "Traditional American Family" has always been presented as the ideal model: mother, father and offspring, and not encumbered by extended kinship. In 1976, "The United States Bureau of the Census defined a family as a group of two or more related persons who live together in a house orapartment" (Wooden, 1976, p. 82). Such a definition of "family" places the onus of its existence squarely on those who are responsible for the existence of the unitthe 213 Page 208 Davis parents. It does not include the public, but that has changed. The family is in the political arena or the politicalarena is in the family, and the consequences of that change are manifesting in child behavior specifically, asocial and anti-social violent behavior. The stability of the family in its traditionally conceived formis extremely tenuous. It is no longer the economic base of survival inthis society. The Department of Children and Family Serviceshas more authority over the children than the parents, and divorce isalmost as casual as dissolving an apartment lease. Increasingly, neitherdivorced parent is willing to take full custody of the children, and extended family is no longer a viable resource. The Traditional AmericanFamily no longer existsif it ever did. We must now reconcile the dissonance we have created by defining the parameters of a 'new' family type.

The New Parents

"Family" is conceptualized in America todayas it has never been in thehistory of thiscountry including our Native American predecessors. Today's conception of "the family" includesa wide array of popular culture ideas basedon necessity, convenience and fashion: such as, dual parents, single parents, homosexualparents, foster parents and households. A professor from Dartmouth Collegesuggests that parental authority in the child-rearingprocess has been abdicated, and the parental authority role-modelingvacuum is being filled by shallow no-brainers in the media. In a series of questions she asks: Why do families fall apart? We spendmore time with smart-talking families on television than with the real ones next door or even in our own house. Media families are not known for their patience, compassion, productivity or thinking. How often do you see sitcom characters working with a sense of commitment? Or reactingto an idea with anything other than a wisecrack? How often do you catch them in an act of civic responsibility" (Mead- ows, 1994, p. F7). Findings from our study on Youth Violence (Davis & Beverly, 1991) suggested that not only dowe have a "new youth" to contend

91d FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 209 with we also have a "new type parent" to learn about, engage and connect with. Today, parents, particularly ethnic parents of color, are constrained in their exercise of culturally determined child-rearing practices, including corporal punishment, by well-meaning child welfare laws, and sometimes over-zealous Child Protective Service Workers. These parents feel confused about their roles as responsible socializers of their offspring. They are conflicted between their own culturally determined child-rearing practices and those of mainstream America. Well- intentioned child protective laws confuse them about the degree to which they are "in charge of their own household." They are frightened of "doing the wrong thing" in raising their children; things for which they can be charged, fined, deprived of their children or ultimately incarcerated. Diorio (1992) makes the point forcefully when he states that:

...the agency's power to take his or her children as a result of any allegation or report of child abuse or neglect, regardless of its validity, and the parent's own relative powerlessness to prevent or contend with such action,allof theparentsstruggletocopewith overwhelming feelings of fear (p. 227). The "New Parents" function without a strong sense of confidence and self-empowerment over their household and offspring, and ultimately their personal identities. From such a chronic state of uncertainty they give off ambivalent and mixed messages when attempting to socialize their young (Karen, 1990). Thus, the child is also confused.

The New Youths

The American family must come to terms with two major questions: one, what legitimate form willit take, and two, what legitimate functions will it take responsibility for? Within the context of those questions rests the struggle today's family whatever its legitimate function is confronted with: a "new youth" created by this culture, and never before encountered in America. The "new youth" phenomenon is 2.15 Page 210 Davis even more crucial for ethnics of color, because, for them, 'race' is still an extremely oppressive variable. This phenomenon or entity I refer to as "The New Youth"eats, sleeps, breathes, and otherwise looks like youths have always looked, but that is where the similarities end. What Iam calling the new youth is the young person who is older than a child, andyounger than the youngest of adults. We used to call them adolescents or teenagers, but they are more than that. They are raised ina socio-political climate similar to that of the former Communist countries where thestate dictated behavior, and any neighbor, relative or stranger, could turn ina person for non-prescribed behavior. The "New Youth" is information literate, interpersonally precocious, under-socialized and suffers from externalized personal identity. The frequency and prevalence of youth violence cutsacross class, racial, gender and ethnic lines. It takes the form of violence toward parents, one-on-one peer violence and even ritualistic killings. In more recent years,itis seen in gang style assassinations and drive-by shootings. Dr. Louis Sullivan (1991), former Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), noted that "(d)uring everyone hundred (100) hours on our streets we lose more young men thanwere killed in one hundred (100) hours of ground war in the Persian Gulf' (p. 27).

Re-empowering Parents and the Family

Status and role definition of both parents and childrenare in real crisis. The status of parenthood is no longer revered inour society. It is an empty role devoid of rights and authority, but laden with responsibilities.Parenthood no longercarrieswithitthehigh community status previously associated with takingon responsibilities of child-rearing and family control. Those rights and responsibilities have been delegated to, or usurped by, the public and political sectors. The rights, privileges and responsibilities of a child, and the significance of childhood have been relegated to nostalgicpop culture. Today children and youth are viewed as marketconsumers and independent citizens of society with "full rights of citizenship," andno civilian responsibilities or accountability. Such extreme alterations of

216 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 211 roles and relationships have brought into question thecommitment both parents and children have to the traditionalfamily structure either in densely populated cities or sparsely populated suburbia andnon-farm rural areas. The politicization of the family, and the usurpation ofparental authority by Child Protective Workers and child welfareagencies force us to seriously question the veracityof our family related policies. For example, "to what extent has the public welfare sectorauthority and political arena ostensibly'inthe interest of thechild' undermined the authority of parents to socialize their young?"While an exact answer to that question may never begained, it is evident that the active role that the state has taken in intervening in thechild-rearing methods of families is significant (Goldstein, Freud &Solnit, 1973; Steiner, 1976; Diorio, 1992). Reported and perceived parental powerlessness in child-rearing (Diorio, 1992) suggests that serious attention needs to be given to ways of reestablishing "highly recognized and prized,"enfranchisements supporting parental authority in the family while outside forces (already in place) maintain some minimized ombudsman's presenceduring the period of re-enfranchisement of parental authority. There are a number of approaches to intervention withfamilies in general, and families of troubled youth in particular. Thesituation described here suggests a multi-level approach to interventionwith families, and especially families with troubled and/or violentyouth (Fromm, 1964; Aronson, 1965; May, 1972). Perhaps the bestexample is the 'conflict resolution' model which is now in wide use(Fisher, Ury and Patton, 1981). Other practical models already influentialin social work practice include the Task-Centered model (Read &Epstein, 1972), the Problem-Solving model (Perlman, 1957), the FunctionalModel (Smalley, 1967) and Behavior Modification (Stuart, 1979).Of the intervention models mentioned perhaps the most practical onefor use with troubled or violent youth is the conflict resolution model.Its utility with those populations bear further exploration.

21 7 Page 212 Davis

References

Aronson, E. (1965). The social animal. San Francisco: W. H.Freeman and Company. Davis, E. & B. C. (1991). Youth violence: An actionresearch project. Multicultural Social Work. New York: Diorio, W. D. (1992). Parental perceptions of the authorityof public child welfare caseworkers. In Families in society: TheJournal of Contemporary Human Services. NY: Family Service America, Inc. Ferman, L. A., Kornbluh, J. L. & Haber, A. (1969). Povertyin America. Ann Arbor: The University of Michigan Press. Fromm, E. (1964). The heart of man. New York: Harper &Row. Giele, J. Z. (1984, Fall). The new family and social turmoil.Brandies Review. Vol. 4. pp. 17-19. Haynes, K. A. (1994, April). To spankor not to spank?. Ebony Magazine. Chicago: Johnson Publications. pp. 64-66. Karen, R. (1990, February). Becoming attached. The Atlantic.Boston: The Atlantic Monthly Company. pp. 35-70. Lasch, C. (1980, March). Historic subversion of the family. Reviewof "The policing of families" by Jacques Donzelot, Trans. by R. Hurley. Psychology Today, Vol. 13, No. 10, pp. 109-111. May, R. (1972). Power and innocence. New York: Norton & Co. Meadows, D. H. (1994, October 9). Weare what we watch. In The Buffalo News. Pp. F7 & F10. Naisbitt, J. & Aburdene, P. (1990). Megatrends 2000: Tennew directions for the 1990's. New York: William Morrow and Company,Inc. Roberts, S. (1994). Who we are: A portrait of America basedon the latest U.S. census. New York: Random House/Times Books. Stuart, R. B. (1979). Behavior modification: A technology ofsocial change. In Turner, F. J. (1986). Ed. Social work treatment: Interlocking theoretical approaches. (3rd Edition). New York: The Free Press. Time Magazine. (1972, December, 25). Children'srights: The latest crusade. New York. p. 42. Toch, H. H. (1969). Violent men: An inquiry intothe psychology of violence. Chicago: Aldine Publishing Company. Wilson, J. Q. (1992, May 24). Loss of parental controlinflames youth pathologies. [Comment]. In The Detroit News.p. 3B. Wooden, K. (1976). Weeping inthe playtime of others: America's incarcerated children. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company. Zinsmeister, K. (1990). Growing up scared. The Atlantic.pp. 49-66. 218 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 213

DIAGNOSIS CRITICAL: POLICY PARADIGMS AND HEALTH CARE OF URBAN AFRICAN-AMERICANS THROUGH THE AIDS ERA

David McBride Pennsylvania State University

Introduction

Problems of health care in the black community have been a major concern among black community leadership since the beginning of this century. W. E. B. Du Bois made the health of blacks a primary focus in several of the Atlanta University conferences and studies which occurred from 1896 to 1906. In 1915 Booker T. Washington founded the Negro Health Week national movement. But it was not until Lyndon Johnson's War on Poverty that the federal government began moving to the forefront of providing health care resources for the black masses among the urban and rural needy. Throughout the 1980s the gap between the life-expectancy of black and white Americans widened. In 1985 it was estimated that African- Americans experienced about 60,000 excess deaths compared to whites, and by 1990 reached 80,000 (Sullivan, 1992). Behind this discrepancy are the higher rates of cancer, heart disease, stroke, diabetes, homicide and AIDS that blacks experienced. Each recent president and congress since the Johnson Administration have taken special measures to try to reduce the higher rates of disease and mortality experienced by blacks and American minorities. But taken on their own or collectively, these efforts have not worked effectively enough in lowering the racial differentials in health status and medical care. Since the mid-1960s, health care policy centered in the large cities has focused on three broad objectives: 1) improving financial access to medical care; 2) building regional networks for more efficient delivery of medical services; and 3) designing prevention and treatment programs to reduce specific public health problems such as venereal disease, drug abuse or inadequate prenatal care. This paper suggests that each of these policy directions in health care have inherent and

219 Page 214 McBride fundamental limitations that must be surmounted if the current health problems of urban blacks are to be ameliorated.

The Economic Access Paradigm

The economic access paradigm emphasizes financial programs that enable the poor and medically needy to pay for medical services. The most wide reaching federal health program involving urban blacks has been Medicaid. Compared to Medicaid, only the Civil Rights Act of 1964 has had a greater impact on the health and welfare of Black America. Medicaid was establishedin1965 toassiststatesin broadening access to care for poor and disabled populations. Under Medicaid the federal government reimburses states that pay medical coverage for welfare recipients, the blind, disabled and elderly (on Supplementary Security Income) and a small segment of "medical needy" with incomes slightly above the income-maintenance payment level. At the time Medicaid was being legislated, about one-third of blacks were poor. Driving Medicaid legislation was the assumption that since the program would substantially reduce the disparity in access to medical care directly for low-income populations, black Americans would especially benefit. (Harper, 1992) Medicaid has proven to be a major instrument for making medical services available to the black poor. By 1978 nearly 20 percent of black Americans under the age of 65 were under Medicaid coverage. By 1984 over 19 million Americans, 6.6 million of whom were black, were covered by Medicaid. On average Medicaid provided thirty percent of the medical financing for blacks, but only six percent of the medical financing for whites. (Brown, 1984) Today Medicaid covers 53 percent of elderly blacks, compared to 32 percent of elderly whites. Medicare,a smaller federalassistance program for the elderlythat emerged alongside Medicaid, provides coverage to another 10 percent of the black elderly. (Harper, 1992) Quantitatively speaking, hospital utilization by low-income blacks has increased markedly because of financial access reforms like Medicaid. Indeed, not only has the gap in hospital use been largely eliminated, but now blacks in general have higher hospital use rates than

220 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 215 whites. The average days blacks spent in hospitals during 1978 to 1980 exceeded those of whites. Black males spent four more days on average in the hospital compared to white males, and black females two more days than white females. Even when income and education were taken into consideration, blacks had substantially longer stays than whites of the same income and educational levels. (Working Group on Health Care Utilization and Financing, 1985) However, Medicaid and similar subsidy programs like Medicare eventually begin to succumb to weaknesses of the economic access model. First, the quality of health care resulting from the Medicaid repayment program has been grossly uneven. Many Medicaid recipients in the urban-poverty locales receive piecemeal medical services below standards of privately insured segments. As early as 1980, noted urban policy analysts were calling Medicaid a fundamental failure. Douglass Glasgow viewed the Medicaid program as just a part of an overall national welfare policy that maintained and monitored the underclass. Urban health care had become "notoriously overcrowded, inadequately staffed and managed county and city hospitals [b] buttressed by Medicaid." According to Glasgow, Medicaid was "a worthy effort that has unfortunately become a bungling, corrupt bureaucracy increasing the hardship and discomfort of the poor who seek health care." (Glasgow, 1980:13) In the meantime, the private-sector medical firms realigned medical services to suit the more middle-class, "prime market." For-profit hospitals and nursing facilities have grown rapidly. These institutions are favored by the more middle-class privately insured orMedicare recipients. By contrast, the types of services that poorer Medicaid recipients rely on, such as out-patient and preventive care, have tended to be neglected. (David and Millman, 1983; Beardsley, 1987; Schneider et al, 1992) The state-regulation of medical coverage programs resultsin inadequate care in many urban locales for numerous specific diseases such as heart disease, cancer and eye disorders. In the Northeast (New York, Connecticut and New Jersey), Medicare does not cover physical examinations that include breast examinations, and blood pressure measurement arenotallowed.Testsforcholesterolscreening, 22.E Page 216 McBride sigmoidoscopy used for diagnosing colon diseases, tonometry toscreen for glaucoma, and mammograms for breastcancer screening also are not allowed by Medicare. (Schneider et al., 1992) RAND, the policy research institute, recently publishedan in-depth study of the quality care that black and Medicaid patients receivedonce in urban non-teaching, teaching and rural hospitals. They establisheda scale for assessing five features of clinical care and performance by medical personnel relating to treatment outcomes. These featureswere cognitive processes of physicians and nurses, technical diagnostic and therapeutic processes, and the monitoring of patients with intensivecare and telemetry. The study concluded that in urban hospitals, "Black patients,Medicaidpatients,andpatientsfromthepoorest neighborhoods all receive worse process of care, whenprocess is examined within each type of hospital." (Kahn et al.,1993: 53) In addition to Medicaid recipients and otherpoor segments receiving a lower quality of care, the administration of Medicaid funds by interest groups in both the public and private sectors oftenproves to be a disastrous financial drain to state governments. Somestate government agencies direct Medicaid funds to private hospitals which mark up large profits by offering services limited to patients whose specific category of treatment that net relatively large Medicaid reimbursements. Loopholes found by Louisiana, for example, enabled it to increase its state health budget from $1.6 billion in 1988 to $4.48 billion in 1993, financed almost totally through federal Medicaid funds. (Washington Post, 1994a) Other states with more liberal eligibility rules have become overwhelmed by the costs for medical services. Spending for Medicaid by New York State, for example,rose 20 percent annually for 1991 and 1992, reaching $14 billion. Currently, Medicaidcosts represent 20 percent of New York's state budget. (Kotelchuck, 1992; Stollman, 1994) Technological advances in medical care have contributedto the drive to use more high-priced equipment and therapies by hospitals and specialists. These health care providers receive massive income from Medicaid in the process of serving a narrowrange of patients. Some institutions have tended to treat the most disabled Medicaid recipients, billingthe government for expensive,long-term and high-tech

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treatment. In Maryland, only ten percent of Medicaid recipients account for seventy percent of Medicaid costs. (Washington Post1994b) Presently Medicaid's deficiencies are so serious that they are a major issue in the federal deficit imbroglio. The rise in costs for technically sophisticated medicine is also being compounded by the aging of much of the nations urban residents. Medical technologies are prolonging life, but also require increased numbers of doctors, nurses and allied health personnel. The elderly are the leading users of hospital care because chronic disease are now more effectively treated with sophisticated techniques and pharmaceuticals. But the economic costs to society for providing sophisticated medicine to the aging populations have overburdened the Medicare and Medicaid programs. Increasing numbers of the elderly are forced to "spend down" their assets, that is impoverish themselves, in order to qualify for Medicaid. (Schneider et al., 1992) The costs of health care to the federal government have risen so rapidly that they jeopardize the most fundamental federal programs. In 1980 health programs totaled 15.8 percent of the federal domestic outlays; 22.2 percent in 1990 and 26.9 percent in 1993. It is projected that by 1998 expenditures for federal health programs will reach 35 percent of the national domestic budget. (Democratic Study Group, 1993)

ILRegional Network Paradigm

By the end of the 1960s and early 1970s federal and local health care policy makers developed a second policy direction to address the medical problems of the inner-city poor. This second policy paradigm has focused on building regional networks to optimize medical services. The regional network approach employs geographically-based planning and the key variable is the physical location of medical service institutions. Health facilities are planned to insure the most convenient location for making care available to people who are most likely to be afflicted with particular disease or health problems. One major benefit envisioned in regional networks is that they minimize response time of medical facilities reaching persons in emergencies. (Mayer, 1988) 223 Page 218 McBride

Theoretically, regional networks are supposed to enable community residents to move efficiently from primary care, to community health care, to the highly-specialized care of the academic medical complex. (Ginsberg, 1971) From their beginning, deficiencies in the urban hospital regional networks began to surface. More public and private dollars were going into financing urban hospitals and medical schools. But the populations in high-poverty urban (and rural) communities immediately surrounding these facilities were not being incorporated as skilled health workers. Because of low education and historical barriers preventing blacks and Latinos from training in medical fields, community residents were unable to gain employment in the upper-level health occupations at these institutions. As patients, many among the urban poor are noninsured. Consequently, they typically have found only two doors into these new hospital networks open: emergency room services and maternity care. The eligibility restrictions and low reimbursement rates discussed earlier further limit the hospital services of many low income blacks. Regionalism presupposes that once a sick individual reaches a medical service site, the physicians and other medical employees there will perform with uniform quality. The regional approach also assumes that facilities treat patients equally regardless of ability to pay. But, in practice, patients who are uninsured experience a substantially higher rate of medical injuries while under medical management. These injuries prolong hospital stays, produce disability at the time the patient is discharged from the hospital, or both. (Burstin et al.,1992) Medicaid recipients, moreover, are routinely turned away by physicians and medical offices which find Medicaid reimbursement rates too low to cover the cost of providing the care. As of 1990, it was estimated that only fifteen percent of the physicians in New York state accepted Medicaid recipients. In cities poor blacks have tended to pick the nearest public hospital or emergency room to obtain medical care. These public hospitals have been rife with debt due to the costs of treating indigent AIDS patients, victims of violence or late-stage disease. They have also tended to be inefficient. (Brellochs and Carter, 1990)

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Given the difficulties the urban poor have been facing with inter- hospital networks, another offshoot of the regional model emerged: community health centers. Neighborhood health centers were smaller versions of regional networks that applied the community medicine idea that had emerged in health projects for Third World settings. (McBride, 1993) Community health centers attempted to bring health care of the hospitals into neighborhoods where medical needs were greatest. Charging patients on a sliding scale, they stressed preventive and nutritional health services while involving community groups in their governance and staffing. By 1978 there were about 125community health centers, and in 1982 over 800. (Davis and Schoen, 1978; Geigerk, 1984). Although community health centers survive, they have undergone rough times and consistent criticism. They become politically unpopular as the nation moved through the Nixon-Reagan years.Hence, funding has been progressively reduced. Community health centers have also been hard to staff with physicians since they have tended to pay at a low-scale. Finally, many health centers are not integrated with other health care institutions in the same locale. (David and Millman, 1983; McBride, 1993) Both the financial access and regional network models erroneously assume that all people similarly identify symptoms they maybe experiencing; behave similarly once symptoms are identified; and will be "rationale consumers" in making choices about selecting and reaching appropriate facilities. However, cultural factors exercise the greatest influence on the individual's perception of their health conditions and medical institutions they use or avoid. (Rosenberg, 1988) Further, as we described earlier, financial and organizational factors determine where individuals will be slotted within a city's overall system of health care delivery, as well as the quality of medical services they receive once inside the system.

IllEpidemiological Paradigm

The third key paradigm shaping recent urban health care delivery is theepidemiologicalmodel.Thispolicyparadigmencourages 225 Page 220 McBride developing medical services according to the diffusion of diseases predicted by epidemiologists. (Mayer, 1988) The strengths of the epidemiological approach is that it stresses prevention, tracking and treatment programs designed to control a specific disease. Furthermore, on a small the epidemiological programs are able to overcome cultural mistrust on the part of community residents. Epidemiological or public health programs frequently employ neighborhood residents and or people trained to recognize the cultural sensibilities of the clients and neighborhoods in which they work. An excellent recent example of federal health planners working with community-based institutions is the Black Leadership Commission on AIDS (BLCA). Established in 1987, BLCA has served as an information source for over 1,500 AIDS-related organizations and 750 black churches throughout metropolitan New York and the nation. It also operates as a consultant to numerous black clergy, professional and civic groups. Currently it has a cooperative arrangement with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for intervention programs for the communities of its black church membership. (BLCA, 1994) But the epidemiological approach also has major weaknesses. Funding for such programs tend to be minuscule compared to the overall budgets of hospitals, medical practices and federal and local health care coverage programs like Medicaid. At the same time, the ghettoization process afflicting inner-city black communities require broader prevention approaches. The New Ghetto is marked by declining populations,deterioratinghousingstocks,andhighratesof homelessness and unemployment. Its public school systems are not equipped, staffed or organized to holistically educate inner-city children and young adults. These communities are experiencing multiple, overlapping epidemicsthat is,disease, behavioral and economic problems that cross-fertilize each other. For example, the following health problems are intertwined: drug abuse and HIV; drug abuse, homicide and housing desertions; unemployment and domestic violence; and so on.. (R. Wallace, 1990; D. Wallace, 1990) Political conflict along race lines also tends to undermine public health approaches to health problems. Often public healthprograms directly conflict with the ethnic or social preferences of community

226 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 221 residents,localleadership and localprofessionals. For example, extensive research on urban blacks experiencingtuberculosis and AIDS epidemics shows that as these epidemics "reservoir"in such minority segments, the political support and publicfunds for disease-control initiatives (like the BLCA) tend to dry up. (McBride,1991) Drug-abuse control programs offer an example of how boththe preventive and the curative medical care approaches can clash, andintensify rather than alleviate an inner-city neighborhood's health crisis.(McBride, 1993)

IVReformed Medicine, Deformed Communities in theAIDS Era

Today's high priced, poorly administered urbanpublic hospitals are like sinking financial ships because they areoverburdened with providing AIDS care and trauma services. Private cityhospitals are also deteriorating in efficiency and cost effectiveness.(Whoolander and Himmelstein, 1991; Merzel et al., 1992) Privateinsurance companies and managed care firms are making capitation contractswith hospitals, group practices and HMOs.There are no guarantees that these service provision networks will chose to include the most needywhich include Medicaid recipients and the uninsured. In themeantime, federal and urban agencies responsible for health care expendituresand programs are in a "no win" situation.If they maintain their current Medicaid reimbursement payments for increasingly expensivemedical facilities or for patients requiring moreand more medical services, they face financial and functional bankruptcy. (Kotelchuck, 1992) Government health financing and administrativeagencies will continue to "privatize" their operations andallocation/decision-making process. This trend will probablyintensify because of the new found political strength of the Republican Party. Some health careanalysts give the current health care delivery the dubious term,"Medicaid managed care." In any case, today's health care policy willcontinue the tendencies that erode traditional health care institutionsin urban black communities such as public hospitals, and obstruct black andforeign- trained physicians who are general practitioners.These minority physicians and inner-city public hospitals will lose theirpatient base as private health care managers assign delivery contractsfor Medicaid and 227 Page 222 McBride

Medicare recipients to more comprehensive, lucrative hospitals and clinics. Unable to maintain independent offices in reach of low-income neighborhoods, the community-based general practices will be forcedto close. Inner-city populations with no health insurance rely heavilyon these low-cost, general physician offices. With these offices closing, such self-paying populations will loseeven these minimal services. (Brellochs and Carter, 1990; Horn, 1994; Randall, 1994) How should we approach this critical diagnosis of urban healthcare policy? How can the excess deaths, inadequatecare and declining role of traditional black health caregivers be reduced? Theseare the research issues that will challenge health care policy analysts in the future. My sense is that prospects for health care reform for the urban African- American needy will not hinge solely on national party politics, federal and state government agencies, or expanding Medicaid managedcare. Our current health care system isso overwhelmingly ineffective, community residents probably will have to rekindle thestrategy of community-based political drives and citywide campaigns popular during the 1960s and 1970s, and in Third World settings. (Fainstein and Fainstein, 1991) Today there is the possibility that not just thepoor, but also specific groups within the nation's medically-needy such as persons with AIDS will join together to pressure government and corporationsto improve health care services for their neighborhoods and most seriously ill populations. Improving both health, as wellas those medical institutions that make health improvement possible, have beena component of black American protest and equal rights movements since the days of W.E.B. Du Bois and Booker T. Washington.

References

Beardsley, E.H. (1987). A history of neglect: Healthcare for blacks and mill workers in the twentieth century. Knoxville: University of Tennessee Press. BLCA (Black Leadership Coalition on AIDS). (1994). Leading the fight against AIDS in the black community. [Communiqué], BLCA: New York.

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Brellochs, C. and Carter, A. (1990). Building primary health careservices in New York City's low-income communities.New York: Community Service Society of New York. Brown, E.R. (1984). Medicare and medicaid:Band-aids for the old and poor. In V.W. Sidel and R. Sidel(Eds). Reforming medicine: Lessons of the last quarter century,. New York: Pantheon:50-56. Burstin, H.R. et al. (1992). Socioeconomic status andrisk for substandard medical care. Journal of the American Medical Association,268: 2383-87. David, E.M. and Millman, M.L. (1983). Health care forthe urban poor: Directions for policy. Totowa, N.J: Rowman; and Allanhead. Davis, K. & Schoen, C. (1978). Health and the war on poverty: a ten year appraisal. Washington D.C: The Brookings Institute. Fainstein, S.S. and Fainstein, N.I. (1991). The changingcharacter of community politics in New YorkCity: 1968-1988. In J.H. Mollenkopf and M. Caste lls (Eds.) Dual city: Restructuring New York. New York: Russel Sage Foundation. Geiger, H.J.(1984). Community health centers:Health care as an instrument of change. In V.W. Sidel and R. Sidel (Eds.) Reforming medicine: Lessons of the last quarter century. New York:Pan- theon: 12-32. Ginsberg, E. (1971). Urban health services: The case of NewYork. New York: Columbia University Press. Glasgow, D.G. (1980). The black underclass: Poverty, unemploymentand entrapment of ghetto youth. New York: Vintage.1992). Elderly issues in the African-American community. Health issuesin the black community. Harper, M.S. (1992) Elderly issues in the African-Americancommunity. In R. L. Braithwaite and S.E. Taylor. (Eds.) Health issues in theblack community. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Horn, R.(1994). Managed care:Implicationsfor underrepresented physicians. Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved. 5:154-157. Kahn, K.L. et al. (1993). Analysis of quality of care for patientswho are black or poor in rural white settings. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Kotelchuck,R.(1992). Medicaid managed care: A mixed review. Health/PAC Bulletin, 22 (Fall 1992). Democratic Study Group, U.S. House of Representatives.(1993). DSG Special Report no. 103-16--A health care plan we cannotafford: The status quo: September 20, 1993: 14-15. 229 Page 224 McBride

Mayer, J.D. (1988). Relations between two traditions of medicalgeography: Health systems planning and geographical epidemiology. Progress in Human Geography, 6: 216-30. McBride, D. (1991). From TB to AIDS: Epidemicsamong urban blacks since 1990. Albany, New York: SUNY Press. McBride, D. (1992). From dogmas to deprivations:Policy and medical history of minority-female drug addiction. Third Women'sPolicy Research Conference: Proceedings. Washington D.C.,May15-16, 1992: 188-94. McBride, D. (1993). Black America: From communityhealth care to crisis medicine. Journal of Health Politics, Policy and Law.18: 319-37. Merzel, C. et al.(1992). New Jersey's medicaid waiver for acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. Health Care Financing Review.13: 27-44. Randall, V. R. (1994). Impact of managedcare organizations on ethnic Americans and underserved populations. Journal ofHealth Care for the Poor and Underserved. 5: 224-36. Schneider, D. et al. (1992). Public health and publichealth services: The Connecticut-New Jersey-New York tri-state region. NewBruns- wick, New Jersey: Center for Urban PolicyResearch, Rutgers University. Stollman, J. (1994). New York will enroll 30 millionmedicaid patients in managed care. Health Systems Review, 27: 5-7. Sullivan, L. W. (1992). Forward. Health issues in theblack community. eds. R.L. Braithwaite & S.E. Tayor. San Francisco:Jossey-Bass: xiii. Wallace, D. (1990). Roots of increased healthcare inequality in New York. Social Science and Medicine 31: 1219-27. Wallace, R. (1990). Urban decertification, public healthand public order: "Planned Shrinkage," Violent death, substance abuse, andAIDS in the Bronx. Social Science and Medicine 31:801-13. Washington Post. (1994a). When long termmeans lifetime. February 1, 1994. Washington Post (1994b). Louisiana tookevery federal dollar we could get our hands on. January 31, 1994. Woolhandler,S. & Himmelstein, D.U.(1991). The deteriorating administrative efficiency of the U.S. healthcare system. New England Journal of Medicine 324: 1253-58. Working Group on Health Care Utlitzation and Financing(U.S. Department of Health and Human Services). (1985). Minorityaccess to health care in the mid-1980s. In Report of the secretary's task forceon

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black & minority health. volume II: Crosscutting issues in minority health.

231 BEST COPY AVAILABLL Page 226 Duncan

BLACK ADOLESCENT IDENTITIES, MULTICUL- TURALISM AND THE STRUGGLE FOR REPRESEN- TATION IN URBAN EDUCATION

Garrett A. Duncan The Claremont Graduate School I began by saying that one of the paradoxes of education was that precisely at the point that you begin to develop a conscience, you must find yourself at war withyour society. It is your responsibility to change society ifyou think of yourself as an educated person. (James Baldwin, A Talk to Teachers)

Introduction

At the core of this proposal are insights proffered bya group of black teenagers coming of age inan urban setting in Southern California. Their individual stories cover arange of issues, from education and economics to God and citizenship. Despite the different areas of concern raised in the stories of these individuals, their words reveal a coherent discourse that challenges popular conceptions of what it is to be educated, humane, and, ina word, good, in the context of American society. Lost in the culturewars which characterize the present political climate of the United Statesisthe subjugated knowledge generated by black teenagers, knowledge that by and large challenges the "shallow pedagogies of consensus" promoted in urban public schools. These pedagogies are those educational theories and practices that foster the maintenance of lifeas usual in the United States, a life that does not include the views and struggles of oppressed people in this country for freedom, justice, and equality. Black Adolescent Resistance to White Supremacy During the fall of 1993, I held conversations and interviews with 22 black male and female teenagers to explore the role of black consciousness on the formation of their identities. These individuals hail from diverse neighborhoods, ranging economically from working-class

232 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 227 to middle class. They share a common urban high schoolthat, reflecting the community in which it is located, is comprised of a diverse mixof Black, Latino, Asian, and European cultural and linguistic groups. The stories of those with whom I spoke generally reflect the bicultural realities of those existing outside of the American dominant culture. Biculturalism, or a "two- ness"of being, is not defined by clearly demarcated or separated spheres of existence; rather, it is, as critical educational theorist Antonia Darder (1991) describes, a complex process encompassing all the conscious and unconscious contradictory, oppressive, and emancipatory responses that can be found along a continuumthat moves, conceptually, between the primary cultureand the dominant culture (p. 54). Teenagers in general, and particularly those who shared their views with me, readilyarticulate these complexities intheir remarks; moreover, their words make problematic manyof the values held in high esteem in the dominant white American culture, values that inform what it is, in the United States, to be human, communal, diverse, and beautiful. For instance, the views of many of those with whom I spoke are informed not only by relations that exist between black people and the dominant American society. Many of their perspectives have to do with relations between America and the "Other" in general. For instance, according to eighteen-year-old Louise,' You know what America reminds me of? You know how they say that since my whole life since I was big, people talked about me, right? Because I cried all the time, and teachers would always tell me that "they are just jealous" and "they find insecurities in them, so they turn their attention off of them, off of their insecurities and put their attention on you so people can talk about you and that

All names used in connection to the participants in this study are pseudonyms.

233., Page 228 Duncan

makes them feelbetter." And that'sactually what America does. I mean, if you think about it. Like Brother Zizwe from Riversidesaid: He said America was founded on a "pimp and ho system." A bunch of hoes from Europe decided they were tired of being pimped and they came over here and decided to pimp theirown selves, their own people. Then they got Africans and started pimping them. What he is saying is basically everybody in America is either a pimp or a ho,or both. Her friend Monica, 17, adds:

And that's what I used to tell my teacher. I used tosay they came over heretryingtofightinjustice and discrimination and prejudice. And after theycame over here, that's what they did. And if you ask people in Britain they'll say that those [colonists]were the scum of the earth. You know, they're like the bad they're like the dirt and they're going to come over here andact like they're all that. And they're not. Monica continues and, with the corroboration of her friends, challenges the authority of white supremacy, especially in thecontext of her schooling experiences:

This year I had a history class and I hada white teacher. I really didn't have in-depth lessons on history before I had a U. S. history class in eleventh grade because in junior high it was just learning the states and the presidents and the years and everything like that. When Igot into this class, the man was like, he was prejudiced ...itwas like he would try to say that everything that the whiteman and U. S., American people did [was good]I'm talking about from the time they came from Britain until here over to the Americas, they've been exploiting people of color. Every time they do something they're exploiting somebody. They're moving them out of theirspace because, like they did the Indians: They moved themout of Florida's lands they moved them over to Oklahoma where they can barely survive and a lot of them died. Like they do with people in Mexico they go down

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there and mess everything up and then want to run away and act like they didn't...

Louise: Mess up the water and then say that the Mexicans...

Monica: And they talk about the smog and junk and how the ozone and all this kind of stuff. And they go mess everything up and then they go run out. You know, they go down there with their tanks and trucks and they do all whatever and then they run out and act like they never did nothing.

Veronica: They do damage and talk...

Monica: And what they do is say "and we helped them and we were going down there on a... retreat tohelp to get them colonized ..."

Louise: And to christianize them... The strident criticism of U.S. racism leveled by these teenagers by no means goes uncontested by their teachers and peers. However, as Louise indicates, conscious adolescents are more often than not ready for the task of defending their positions. Along these lines, Louise shares the following story: Me and Darrin Smith, from the seventh-grade on up, we used to get into arguments. I said "I hate America, like I want to go back to Africa." And he's like, "I've been to Africa and in Zimbabwe" and this and that. "It's horrible and you wouldn't want to live there and they'd consider you a stupid American," all this stuff. And we went head up because he felt one way about Africa and I felt one way about Africa, and we both had been there, so it was like, you know.

I don't know, it's like America puts on this façade and say that they're doing everything to help everybody. They're like the godmother to the world and they're there 235 Page 230 Duncan

to help. And I just couldn't stand it. Once you start hearing what's really going on behind closed doors.

In the seventh-grade I did a play for Black History Month and I did this part in it by Stokely Carmicheal when he says like if America and Brazil go to war, then Blacks will be fighting Blacks once again: only one is an American Black and the other is a Brazilian Black, but they're still Black and we're killing our own people. It just really sunk in and it's like I can't stand America. Darrin brought up some interesting points like if I was in South Africa I probably wouldn't have the opportunities that I have now, even to speak out and to be me and to survive for a long time. But still, I mean I can't say OK I'm thankful for having these opportunities but I still can't stand America. It's like I can see if I wanted to come over here; but I had no choice and I can't stand it. In another conversation, seventeen-year-old Kwesi recounts an episode at school that illustrates how his attitudes were at odds with the curriculum: My second period, we were doing our report and the book ...we were doing our report about it was something about, I think it was a history report and one part of this book said that Marcus Garvey seemed to be a Black Moses. And I had comments about that a lot. I mean, I didn't agree with that. I feel, I thought that Moses was Black himself. So, as soon as I said that, a lot of hands raised.... Ironically, black teenagers generally express high regard for education. That they are strident in their criticism is indicative of the distinctions they make between schooling and education. "The former is primarily a mode of control," critical educational theorist Peter McLaren (1989) argues. The latter, he continues, "has the potential to transform society, with the learner functioning as an active subject committed to self and social empowerment" (p. 165). Public schools, as is true with any human institution, are rife with contradictions, representing as they do sites of repression and possibility, places where FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 231 both negative and positive values converge to be appropriated, negotiated, and repudiated. These contradictions are clearly observable in pedagogical practices which, in turn, reflect basic American values. Consensus is a salient value guiding dominant pedagogies, especially as a pronounced theme in competing trends of multicultural education. The notion of consensus is a "bottom-line" of sorts: "Let's face it, we're all in this together; we are all part of the great mosaic that is the United States of America." As such, public schools tend to privilege and affirm a range of consensual thinking and acting. For the most part, these attitudes are in direct conflict with students who view consensual activities as dehumanizing activities or, in other words, measures to avoid direct confrontation with the contradictions between realities fabricated in schools and those lived out in the everyday experiences of the children and adolescents who attend them. Rarely do educators explore the ways in which the idea of consensus is, in most cases, superficially defined and conveniently used to subvert the self-determination of students of color. Moreover, the uncritical and stubborn requirement for agreement and community glosses over contested meanings of the destiny of subordinated groups in the United States and, by extension, what it is to be civil and humane. Indeed, much of the contestation turns on the issue of democracy, another value that is fundamental to traditional American educational discourse. However, as Ralph Ellison (1987) points out:

...the true subject of democracy is not simply material well-being but the extension of the democratic process in the direction of perfecting itself. And that the most obvious test and clue to that perfection is the inclusion not assimilation of the Black man [and woman] (p. 110). With respect to the importance of schools in achieving a democracy that is inclusive rather than assimilative, the teenagers I spoke with express a range of views. Fourteen-year-old Roni, for instance, observes that: It's like now it's not just enough to graduate from high school; you have to have some type of degree behind your name, you know, stuff like that. So you have to 237 Page 232 Duncan

work hard....Then they keep raising up the money so it makes it even harder to get into college and everything... They raise up like the tuition and everything. And like if you liveinanotherstate and you go tocollege somewhere else, you have to pay the state fee, and that will raise your tuition and stuff like that. So, it makes it like harder and plus, everybody don't have allthat money. Roni's comments reveal her profound understanding of the material conditions of schooling. She further notes "pretty soon it's going to be that only those people who have really good jobs can send their kids to college." Others point to inequalities, such as second generation discrimination, a form of educational inequality that is reflected in the different treatment that groups of students at the same schools receive, treatment that reflects the cultural and economic disparities in the wider society (England, R., Stewart, J., & Meier, K. 1990). For instance, twenty-year-old Brenda recalls that high school, for her, was "a big prison; it was like I just had to be there and that's all that I remember it as I had to be there." She says that she now resents that her counselors and teachers did not stress college but rather placed her in a course of study that would do little more than allow her to leave high school with a diploma. Brenda recalls that all the courses recommended to her by her counselors were easy ones and that she was never apprised of alternatives to or the consequences of her choices. Sharing the same concrete experiences with Brenda, Kwesi further elaborates, pointing out that counselors often place obstacles in the way of the aspirations of his peers who try to enter college preparatory courses. He gives credit to advertisement campaigns on television and radio as shifting the way some of his peers presently view education; however, he also views this project as a cruel hoax, giving as his reason illustrations of the difficulty that many of his peers encounter when they attempt to pursue lofty educational goals. Most of the obstacles these students face are the result of a maze of requirements, rules, and prerequisites created by teachers and counselors, who effectively discourage students of color from taking more rigorous courses of study. However, even access to

233 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 233 college prep courses will not guarantee an education, Kwesi declares. He argues: For one, school systems weren't taught to teach the masses; they were supposed to be like baby-sitters.... They baby-sit kids from eight till whatever time the parents get home. When schools first started out in the United States, they were not set up to teach people just to keep them off the street. Now they trying to say, "Well, we'll teach them," and it's not working. It was not set up to teach the masses. Only the "good" folk got the good old schools and really learned. Everybody else was just supposed to be there. And then they taught you the lies anyway. For reasons similar to those expressed by Kwesi, Clayton, 16, feels that black people should have their own schools: I like school, because it teaches; whatever teaches is good. Whether you have wisdom and decipher it to build upon it is your problem, you know what I'm saying? But it is not evidentially positive, you know what I'm saying? Some teachers don't care and some care. But some don't know it's their problem too. They don't know what I need. Till they know what I need, they won't be able to supply me with it." Clayton goes on to note that, "If they understand my nature and I understand theirs, then it will work. That's why I think we should have black schools because black people have black problems and they can help black children with their black problems.

Multiculturalism as a Struggle for Representation: Moving Beyond Shallow Pedagogies of Consensus in Urban Education The views expressed by an increasing number of black teenagers suggest that the general ideas that undergird the development of pedagogy, especially in urban public schools, need to be examined. Elsewhere, I (Duncan, 1994) linked these views to a zone of black bodies (ZBB), a concept I use to describe ways of thinking and behaving that challenge the legitimacy of dominant American values. 239 Page 234 Duncan

Behaviors linked to the ZBB suggest that multiculturalism, rather than circumscribed by the politics of assimilation or pluralism,isa phenomenon guided by the values of self definition, self-determination, and resistance. Indeed, schools, as places where dominant American values are affirmed and reproduced, are also places where struggles for representation are most prominent. Black adolescents construct their identities through redefining what itis that constitutes respectable thinking and behaving in a racist society. In effect, they disrupt the discursive grid from which values that, in this society, serve white supremacist ends. Specifically, these values range along a continuum where, at one end, the values of control and conformity are most salient and, at the other, those of consensus and harmony are promoted. Pedagogically speaking, practices in American public schools are for the most part guided by economic requirements in the larger, market- driven society where teachers are often called upon to subordinate the subjective needs of their students to external exigencies. As such, public schools tend to be conservative places that employ transmission educational practices where knowledge is transmitted from the teacher to the student. "Truth," in these cases, is treated as an absolute and unchanging entity. Envisioned this way, it is accessed by knowledge that is also absolute and unchanging and, further, that transcends time and circumstance. Implicit in this view of truth is that young people are blank slates and the process of learning is the simple accumulation of facts and information. Brazilian educator Paulo Freire describes the dominant educational practice associated with this static view of truth and by extension, knowledge and humanity as the "banking method" of education. Here, "education becomes the act of depositing, in which students are the depositories and the teacher is the depositor" (1990, p. 58). Emphasized in this type of education is control, rigidity, and conformity. Hence, the banking method of education promotes literacy for stupidification, where education is reduced to "mindless, meaningless drills. and exercises given 'in preparation for multiple choice exams and writing gobbledygook in imitation of the psycho- babble that surrounds them' (Macedo, 1993, p. 188). Schools that employ these practices effectively function to sort out students in a way

240 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 235 that reflects and reproduces oppressive economic and social realities in the larger society, thus revealing the political nature of schooling. Clearly, many, if not most, educators do in fact acknowledge that changes need to be made in the way schools are conducted, especially as these changes concern the education of students of color in urban settings. Here, teachers tend to view truth as being relative, with some truths being simply more advantageous than others. Such conceptions of truth and knowledge are related to an idealistic brand of pluralism. Along these lines, interpretations of the ways individuals make meaning in a given context are sought in order to understand the degree and magnitude of their deviation from the "accepted truth." Embedded in this liberal view of education is the idea that schools should provide the conditions for students to gain access to the tools that will ensure their social mobility; this is seen, for instance, in the emphasis that teachers place on the development of cognitive skills in children. However, by denying the socially constructed contexts in which cognition is shaped, more often than not, teachers gloss over those aspects of schooling that "gradually incite rebelliousness on the part of children and adolescents" (Freire & Macedo, 1987, p. 121). Subsequently, despite the flexibility andgreaterlatitudeliberalpedagogieshaveforsubordinated populations, they nonetheless ignore how the persistence of "failure" among certain students may indeed represent "the triumph of the schooling class" (p. 121) over oppressive circumstances. As in the case of conservative approaches to education, liberal schooling is most pronounced in the narrowly defined area of literacy. Here, emphasis is placed on the process of learning as opposed to the product of education. Yet, rarely do educators who emphasize the process of learning acknowledge the "culture of power" in which schools exist and in which teachers are implicated (Delpit, 1988). In the absence of an interrogation of how schools serve to reproduce and affirm inequality in the United States, the notion of "failure" is projected onto children of color rather than viewed as a social requirement intrinsic to a myopic view of what it means to be human, especially as it relates to being so in a hostile environment. Both conservative and liberal pedagogical practices can be seen, then, to emerge as a dialectic between specific conceptions of truth and

241 Page 236 Duncan humanity. This interchange is realized in the way truth is pursued, or how knowledge is acquired, and is further informed by assumptions pertaining to the relationship between truth and human beings. When truth is believed to be timeless, absolute, and external to the reality of human beings, as it often is by those who function within conservative pedagogical frameworks, children and adolescents are viewed as automatons into which teachers deposit predetermined tidbits of knowledge. Further, successful students are those who, by and large, are proficient at regurgitating the same information when called upon to do so. On the other hand, when truth is viewed to be relative to the experiences of theknower,teachersoftenreducestudentsto encapsulated, solipsist entities. Under these circumstances, students evince their understanding of truth by engaging inimaginative excursions or mental escapades that often undermine the egalitarian objectives of teachers who fail to acknowledge that some of our deepest preconceptions have been historically conditioned by the oppressive values of the wider society. Such assumptions, which underpin our everyday thinking about things, undergird forms of dysconsciousness or warped thinking (King, 1991) and "habitudes" habitually unexamined attitudes (Flores, Cousin & Diaz, 1991) that constitute normal, even highly respectable, ways of thinking in society. Truth, "understood as a system of ordered procedures for the production,regulation,distribution,circulation, and operation of statements" (Foucault, 1980) must be viewed as being inextricably linked to power. The truth-power dialectic is actualized, reinforced, and enacted in the material conditions of our lives and also in the formation of coherent ideologies which structure dominant views of reality. In the context of the United States, where white supremacy is a basic way of life, racism manifests itself in interactions and dynamics in all areas of American life, including pedagogical transactions between students and teachers. Thus, when black students resist the pejorative categories that are assigned to them, "the battle is on!" "Because," as James Baldwin (1988) boldly declares: if I am not what I've been told I am, then it means that you're not what you thought you were either. And that is the crisis" (p. 8).

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By challenging both concrete and conceptual dimensions of authority that serve white supremacist ends in the larger society, black teenagers literally re-configure boundaries of truth and knowledge. They, in effect, assault the "regime of truth" (Foucault, 1980) that circumscribes possibilities for existing in the United States. On a concretelevel,black teenagers explicitly challenge both school knowledge and the authorities through whom this knowledge is conveyed. However, their behaviors and attitudes are not simply reactionary. By making critical linkages between schooling and the reproduction of racism in the wider American society, black teenagers alter discursive formations that legislate respectability in this country. An examination of how truth and knowledge are treated in the wider society, based on an interrogation of underlying assumptions, is necessary to engage the powerful identities that black teenagers bring to public spheres. For teachers, this means a re-evaluation of the ideologies that frame dominant American pedagogical practices, especially as they relate to the values of conformity, control, consensus, and harmony. By acknowledging that these values may also negate self-determination and ethical resistance to oppression, educators better position themselves to understand that truth is simultaneously relative and absolute. Truth is relative owing to the multiple perspectivesthat individuals and collectives bring to bear on understanding and acting to transform reality. It is absolute given the individual constraints that are requisite for existing as a man or a woman among men and women. Thus, educators who are committed to educating children and adolescents of color must concern themselves with the authentic representation of all people, both in concrete and conceptual terms. Toward this end, in order to move beyond shallow pedagogies of consensus, educators must address how we are to promote pedagogies to transform our classrooms and society so that dominant truths reflect more broadly those multiple truths of the individuals who make up society.

References

Baldwin, J. (1988). A talk to teachers. In Simonson, R. and Walker, S. (Eds.), The graywolf annual five: Multicultural literacy (pp. 3-12). St. Paul, MN: Graywolf Press. (Original work published in 1963.) Page 238 Duncan

Darder, A. (1991). Culture and power in the classroom: A critical foundation for bicultural education. New York: Bergin and Garvey. Delpit, L. (1988). The silenced dialogue: Power and pedagogy in educating other people's children. Harvard Educational Review., 58(3), 280- 298. Duncan, G. (1994). The light before the dawn: Towarda critically grounded theory of black consciousness, adolescent development, and schooling. Doctoral dissertation, The Claremont Graduate School. University Microfilm International, No. 9502329. Ellison, R. (1987). What America would be like without blacks. In Goingto the territory (pp. 104-112). New York: Vintage Books (Originally published 1970). England, R., Stewart, J., & Meier, K. (1990). Excellence in education: Second generation school discrimination asa barrier. Equity and Excellence, 24(4), 35-40. Flores, B, Cousin, P., & Diaz, E. (1991). Transforming deficit mythsabout learning, language, and culture. Language Arts, 68, 369-379. Foucault, M. (1980). Power/ knowledge: Selected interviews andother writings 1972-1977 (C. Gordon, L. Marshall, J. Mepham, & K. Soper, Trans.; C. Gordon, Ed.). New York: Pantheon Books. Freire, P. (1990). Pedagogy of the oppressed. New York:Continuum. (Original work published in 1970.) Freire, P., & Macedo, D. (1987). Literacy: Reading the word and theworld. South Hadley, MA: Bergin & Garvey Publishers, Inc. King,J.(1991).Dysconscious racism:Ideology,identity,and the miseducation of teachers. Journal of Negro Education, 60(2), 133- 146. Macedo, D. (1993). Literacy for stupidification: The pedagogy of biglies. Harvard Educational Review, 63(2), 183-206. McLaren, P. (1989). Life in schools: An introductionto critical pedagogy in the foundations of education.. New York: Longman.

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AFROCENTRIC STRATEGIES AND THEIR PROMISE FOR SOLVING PROBLEMS AFFECTING AFRICAN- AMERICAN MALES IN URBAN AREAS

Ron Stewart State University of New York College at Buffalo

Introduction

When we lookatthe conditions of urban areas, we see deterioration. Schools are inadequate, drug abuse is rampant, teen pregnancy and crime are rising, and socialinequality transcends race and gender differences. The vicissitudes associated with urban living suggest there indeed is an "urban crisis." And, nowhere isthe crisis more apparent than in those urban areaswhere there is a large concentration of African-Americans. A review of every official index mortality, health, crime, homicide, life expectancy, income, education, unemployment, and marital statuswill reveal African-Americans rank poorly (Majors and Gordon 1994, p.ix). This is especially true for African-American men. According to Majors and Gordon (1994) "social indicators show that black males experience higher rates of a wide variety of health and social problems, including heart disease, hypertension, cirrhosis of the liver, tuberculosis and other lung diseases, ( diabetes,homicide,suicide,unemployment,underemployment, delinquency and crime, school dropout, imprisonment, and unwed teenage parenthood." These authors further state that inaddition to the aforementioned health and social problems, African-Americans, males in particular, also suffer from and experience more mental disorders, psychotropic medication, and psychiatric hospitalization (Majors and Gordon,1994). Echoing these sentiments also, Marable (1994, p. 91) states that "every socioeconomic and political indicator illustratesthat the African-American male in the U.S. is facing an unprecedented crisis." The most cogent depiction of the urban crisis facing African- American men is provided by Haki Madhubuti (1990) when he writes: The pain is in the eyes. Young Black men in their late twenties or early thirties living in urban America, lost

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and abandoned, aimlessly walking and hawking the streetswithnothingbehindtheir eyesbutanger, confusion, disappointment and pain. These men, running the streets, occupying corners, often are beaten beyond recognition, with scars both visible and internal. These men, Black mensons of Afrika, once strong and full of the hope that America lied aboutare now knee-less, voice-broken, homeless, forgotten and terrorized into becoming beggars, thieves or ultra-dependentson a system that considers them less than human and treats them with less dignity and respect than dead dogs (Madhubuti, 1990: p. xii).

This author's research on African-American males has founda lamentable absence of work that focuses upon aspects other than the dysfunctional features of being African and male in the United States (Stewart, 1991). This is especially true when itcomes to their presence in the family studies' literature. There is sucha dearth of literature that Noel Cazenave (1979) derisively refers to African-American males' absence as "the phantom of American family studies." Given the plight of African-Americans in general and African-American males in particular, what can individuals from diverseareas within the Academy as well as outside do to make a significant difference in their lives? In efforts to fill the gaps in the literatureon African-American males, perhaps the incorporation of an alternative scientific framework for dealing with the myriad problems confronting African-Americans in urban areas is needed. The thrust of such a model entails social scientists embracinga new way of thinking when conducting research on African-American men. Thinking which in some way may be antithetical to the conventional social scientific way of thinking and doing research. Sincewe are aware of the nexus between thought and action, it is conceivable thatbetter, more productive research might result from the utilization of the approach I advocate when investigating the African-American male scientifically. The academic community is aware of the fact that positivism is the primary epistemological model in Western Social Science. Positivism defines social science as an organized method for combining deductive

246 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 241 logic with precise empirical observations of individual behavior in order to discover and confirm a set of probabilisticcausal laws that can be used to predict general patterns of human activity (Newman,1994, p. 58) and how it operates. The alternative model I explain andadvocate here is Afrocentricity. This model may be juxtaposed with the western social science model, but Afrocentricity holds more promise for solving urban problems confronting African-Americans. (For a moredetailed discussion of this topic see Oliver, 1991; Baldwin, 1991). Definition, Afrocentricity and Science At one time in the not so distant past Molefi K. Asante's(1988) conception of Afrocentricity was considered the definitive view. According to Asante (1992): Afrocentricity is an instrument for the examination of phenomena. The two aspects of afrocentricity are the theory and the practice. At its base it is concerned with african people being subjects of historical and social experiencesratherthan objectsinthemarginsin european experiences (Asante 1992, p. 20). Though Asante's view is still essential, recently there have been further discussions of how Afrocentricity is defined. For Jeff (1994): Afrocentricismistheresidualof observations and experiences of African peoples. It results from the history of Africa, and from the minimal portrayal of Africans in the records of documented world history. Its assumptions are based upon Africa's unique role inthe origin of the human species. Thus, the African world view is the foundation of the Afrocentric paradigm in juxtaposition to the prevalent Eurocentric worldview (Jeff 1994, p. 102). Scheile (1991) sees Afrocentricity as a philosophical model predicated on traditional african philosophical assumptions. He writes that the approach is one of the three philosophical models of thisworld (the others being eurocentricity and asiancentricity), and like these others it has a distinct set of cosmological, ontological, epistemological, and axiological attributes. Scheile sees Afrocentricity as a means 247 Page 242 Stewart

through which people can understand phenomena and define realitya way through which the world, and all its elements, can be viewed (Schiele 1991 p. 27). In sum, Afrocentricity for Schiele isa social scienceparadigmgrounded inphilosophicalassumptionsof contemporary African-America and traditional Africa. Additionally, three separate beliefs inform Early's notion of what Afrocentricity is: 1) The belief that society's dominant body of scholarship exhibits a decidedly "white" or "eurocentric" bias in support of a "white" or "eurocentric" political and social hegemony; 2) The belief that the western world has smothered divergent ideas that promote a distinctly african or nonwhite viewpoint; and 3) The belief that African peoples around the globe cancome to a full self-determination and complete humanity only when they are permitted to overthrow "white" or "eurocentric" intellectual premises and when they can fullyrealize and articulate themselves through self-creation. (Early, 1993/1994, p. 46). Finally, Kambon (1992) suggests that Afrocentricity involves utilizing the history, culture and philosophy of African people,as the frame of reference for organizing one's approach to realitysurvival and understanding of the world. It is the conceptual frameworkor orientation to reality (values, beliefs, definitions, rituals, customs, practices, etc.) based on the history, culture, and philosophy of African people as a collective. As you can see there is diversity among Afrocentristsas to how Afrocentricity is actually defined. Perhaps this is thecase because, according to one writer, the concept may be going throughan era of reconstruction (Hopkins 1994). Nonetheless, there isa common feature throughout each writer's conception of Afrocentricitythe primacy of an African world view in understanding social phenomena. Once researchers understand the definition and meaning of Afrocentricity, what effects might such an approach to research have in the application of the positivist approach to social science? Further, how can the Afrocentric approach be used to benefit African-American males? Some of the canons of an Afrocentric research methodology that

243 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 243 may have some promise forsolving problems facing African-American males in urban centers include the following views. First, there is the belief on the part of Afrocentric socialscientists that science is not value neutral. That is to say, science serves toreflect and defend a group or culture's ideology. Carruthers (1972) and Akbar (1984) have both arguedagainst the valuelessness of science. They contend that the "objective"approach does not preclude values because objectivity is a value.Indeed, when an observer chooses to suspend from his or her observationscertain levels of reaction, then this is a value judgement. From anAfrocentric perspective the notion of a "value free" science suggests that the sources (e.g., myths) of important information left out cancritically alter what is perceived as real. Kambon's (1992) definition of scienceillustrates the fallacy of science as value free. He writes: "Science refers tothe formal and systematic application of a people's epistemological system or cosmology in an attempt to uncover and/or reconstruct reality(in whole or in part)." (Kabon, 1992, p. 30). This definition of science suggests that if we want tofully understand different cultural groups the methodologiesemployed to study group members should reflect the cultural integrityof the groups under examination. Indeed, it is erroneous to use so called"objective" or "value neutral" models toadequately examine non-European individuals. It would be possible if one assumes thatAfricans and Europeans define the world, reality, and so forth the same.However; given their unique statuses in American societysubordinateand superordinaterelationships AfricanandEuropeanindividuals definitional orientations reflect their distinct racial-culturalrealities, i.e., there are fundamental differences in the socialrealities between Africans and Europeans (Baldwin, 1980). Furthermore, thenotion of science as "value free" is essentially responsible for theidea behind scientific universalism. Scientific universalism refers to how social science isemployed in the understanding of social phenomena related to.different racial and ethnic groups. Usually individuals who are not indigenousmembers of a particular group state that they areconducting an "objective" analysis of whatever is being examined. Unfortunately,the model these 249 Page 244 Stewart individuals use is mainstream- white stream-social science. From a cultural relativism perspective one has to question the value ofsuch a model because racial and or ethnic differences donot lend themselves to a universalistic scientific model of understanding. This point becomes critical if you consider the fact that mainstream positivistic models of social science research have beenaccused of being uncomfortably distant from their objects of study(Park 1989; Aulette and Perkins 1992; Mbilinyi 1992). Not only iswestern social science uncomfortably distant from its objects of study, but it has also been criticized as being a tool used tooppress African people (Akbar 1984; Nobels 1978). Given such limitations, all themore reason why it is necessary to use a model that acknowledges the notion of"value added" research. Second, Afrocentric social scientists emphasize the importance of emotions and feelings in understanding social phenomena. In fact, according to the Afrocentric viewpoint, emotions and feelingsare the most direct experience of reality; therefore, the affectiveway of knowing is viewed as valid. As alludedto earlier, the primary epistemological position in Western Social Science is positivism which, according to one critic, "assumes that which is given and hasto be accepted as it is found rather than going beyond to something unknown such as had been the case in some theological and metaphysical circles" (Akbar 1984, p. 396). Afrocentricism departs from this rigid adherence to empirical verification by asserting that epistemologically, language, myth, ancestral memory, dance-music-art, and science providethe sources of knowledge, the canons of proof and the structure of truth (Asante, 1992, p. 24). Afrocentrism does notnegate the importance of knowing through sensory perception,butitisnot limited by it.3Intuition, spirits, and other metaphysical phenomenaare acceptable ways of knowing. Third, the Afrocentric scientific perspective de- emphasizesthe importance of the fragmentation of human and social phenomena. This principle is in opposition to the notion in Western social scientific thinking where whole concepts are broken down intoparts. For example, if we take the concept religiosity in western social science itis

250 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 245 conceived of as having several dimensions; however, afrocentrically, religiosity is inseparable. Fourth, there is a de-emphasis upon quantification and reductionism as ways of knowing and observing human phenomena from an Afrocentric scientific viewpoint. That is, Afrocentric social science departs from the rigid adherence to quantification as a means of interpreting and understanding social phenomena. Even non-Afrocentric social scientists have questioned the validity of western social science and its reliance on quantitative research methodologies (Valentine, 1968). Echoing such sentiments the Afrocentric approach relies upon both quantitative and innovative qualitative methodologies. Indeed, the fact that "language, myth, ancestral memory, dance-music-art, and science provide the sources of knowledge,..." (Akbar, 1992, p. 24) precludes an emphasis on quantification. As a caveat to the position taken here, the author agrees with Demos (1990) where he writes "nonquantitative or qualitative studies may lead to invalid or unreliable conclusions just as quantitative may;" (Demos, 1990, p. 609) however, from an Afrocentric perspective the use of qualitative approaches such as ethnography allow researchers to examine and understand African- Americans from a "native point of view" rather than the imposition of euro-interpretations. Thus minimizing the possibility for errors or invalid conclusions. Fifth, Afrocentric social science emphasizes the importance of understanding the nonmaterial and material aspects of human beings equally. As alluded to earlier, ontologically, Afrocentricity assumes the primacy of spiritualism. Though western social science acknowledges the role rationalism play in knowledge development, more emphasis is placed upon empiricism as the most optimal way of acquiring knowledge. There is more to be gained when both the material and nonmaterial are considered in the production of knowledge. Six, whereas western social science is more apt to break social phenomena into micro and macro levels of understanding, Afrocentric social science emphasizes a wholistic understanding of human and social phenomena. Indeed, given the interdependency of phenomena, nature and person are viewed as one and must be studied as such. Finally, the model or view of normality is that of group survival in the 251 Page 246 Stewart

Afrocentric approach. According to Akbar (1984), normality for western social science is "established on a model of the middle-class, Caucasian male of European descent. The more that one approximates this model in appearance, values, and behavior, the more "normal" one is considered to be. Akbar further states that the inevitable conclusion from such assumptions of normality is a brand of deviance for anyone unlike this model (Akbar, 1984, p. 397). Afrocentricity does not employ such a view of normality if but for no other reason than the fact that there are factors, e.g., white supremacy, in American society that militate against African-American males being able to approximate Eurocentric normality. In sum., an Afrocentric approach may be helpful in reducing many of the problems confronting African-Americans in general and males in particular because it provides a prescription for proper social conduct. Furthermore,itsscientific approachisdevoid of many of the shortcomingsthatcharacterizewesternsocialscience.More importantly, according to Everett et al.: Afrocentricity describestheethos of Africans and African- Americans and the values that guide the way African-Americans interact with the world around them. It goes beyond issues of institutional oppression to offer a global view of the people of the African diaspora. It counteracts the all-too-conventional application of a deficit model to the behaviors, beliefs, and Attitudes of African-Americans by emphasizing strengths." (Everett et.al, 1991 p. 15). As alluded to by Everett et.al., Afrocentricity goes beyond a deficit approach to understanding social phenomena; and this is where, in my opinion, Afrocentricity's worth in empirical examinations of black males lays. That is, in terms of how an Afrocentric social science can affect research study on African- American males, as a starting point researchers could cease the practice of studying African-American males from a social problems perspective. Too often as stated by Taylor et.al. (1990) many researchers place an inordinate emphasis on the social problems facing blacks in general and black males in particular. These authors further state that such research efforts stand in contrast to

252 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 247 a lot of the emerging research that illuminates the diversity of life among African-Americans. Inadditiontoutilizationof an Afrocentricperspectivein conducting scientific investigations, similar approaches have been used in an effort to ameliorate many of the adverse conditions impacting African-American males. Below, I enumerate and discuss several. Afrocentric Approaches to Urban Problem Solving As a model for addressing the negative conditions confronting African-Americans in general and males in particular, "Afrocentrism refers to internalizing structures, values, and practices that are African derived, and applying the best of them to present-day situations." (Jeff, 1994, p. 103). For example, using the works of anthropologists Niara Sudarkasa and his own writings, Jeff (1994) enumerates seven African ethical principles that suggest the "proper social conduct of Africans wherever they reside in the world" (Jeff, 1994, p.103). Cited are Respect, Responsibility, Reciprocity, Restraint, Religion, Rhythm, and Redemption,-the Seven Rs. Jeff sees these Afrocentric principles as having implications for social conduct; consequently, they ought to be a part of the socialization process in African-American families. An eventuality such as this would perhaps result in an altering of most, if not all, of the destructive behavior exhibited by black males. In a similar vein, the seven principles associated with the Nguzo Saba are also promising in terms of ameliorating the adverse conditions affecting African-Americans in urban centers. Karenga (1994) defines the Nguzo Saba "as a communitarian African value system necessary to build community and serve as social glue and moral orientation for cultural practice." (Karenga, 1994, p. 173). The principles are as follow: 1) Umoja (Unity); 2) Kujichagulia (Self-Determination); 3) Ujima (Collective Work andResponsibility);4) Ujamaa (Cooperative Economics); 5) Nia (Purpose); 6) Kuumba (Creativity); and 7) Imani (Faith). As an illustration of how the value system of the Nguzo Saba can help African-Americans overcome the urban crisis, one simply needs to understand the literal meaning of each principle. For example, Ujima, or Collective Work and Responsibility, suggests that: "we could conceivably solve our problems better if we worked together rather than

EST COPY AV1LABLk 253 Page 248 Stewart individuallyasthe Euro-Americanculturalorientationtowards individualism implies." Madhubuti (1990) has developed an Afrocentric approach to marriage and fathering. Referred to as the "African-American Father's Pledge" it has ten (10) points. 1) I will work to be the best father I can be. Fathering is a daily mission,and there are no substitutes for good fathers. Since I have not been taught to be a father, in order to make my "on the job" training easier, I will study, listen, observe and learn from my mistakes. 2) I will openly display love and caring for my wife and children. I will listen to my wife and children. I will hug and kiss my children often. I will be supportive of the mother of my children and spend quality time with my children. 3) I will teach by example. I will try to introduce myself and my family to something new and developmental each week. I will help my children with their homework and encourage them to be involved in extracurricular activities. 4) I will read to or with my children as often as possible. I will provide opportunities for my children to develop creatively in the arts; music, dance, drama, literature and visual arts. I will challenge my children to do their best. 5) I will encourage and organize frequent family activities for the home and away from home. I will try to make life a positive adventure and make my children aware of their extended family. 6) I will never be intoxicated or "high" in the presence of my children, nor will I use language unbecoming for an intelligent and serious father. 7) I will be nonviolent [emphasis added] in my relationships with my wife and children. As a father, my role will be to stimulate and encourage my children rather than carry the "big stick." 8) I will maintain a home that is culturally in tune with the best of African-American history, struggle and future. This will be

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done, in part, by developing a library, record/disc, video and visual art collections that reflect the developmental aspects of African people worldwide. There will be order and predictabil- ity in our home. 9) I will teach my children to be responsible, disciplined, fair and honest. I will teach them the value of hard work and fruitful production.Iwill teach them the importance of family, community, politics and economics. I will teach them the importance of the Nguzo Saba (Black value system) and the role that ownership of property and businesses plays in our struggle. 10)As a father, I will attempt to provide my family with an atmosphere of love and security to aid them in their development into sane, loving, productive, spiritual, hard-working, creative African-Americans who realize they have a responsibility to do well and help the less fortunate of this world. I will teach my children to be activists and to think for themselves (Madhubuti, 1990, pp. 193-94). Again, like the Seven Rs, these principles have implications for social conduct and they too ought to be a part of the socialization process. Lastly, Jawanza Kunjufu's "Rites of Passage" in Countering the Conspiracy to Destroy Black Boys (1982), and Na'im Akbar's (1991) Visions for Black Men, are two additional Afrocentric approaches for solving the problems of urban African-American males. Though they have some distinguishing features, both are similar in that each provides a plan of action whereby if enacted would result in a significant reduction of the destructive behavior practiced by so many African- American males in urban areas. Of paramount importance in all these discussions is the need for positive male socialization processes.

Conclusion

As has been discussedhere,African-American malesare confronted with a plethora of adverse conditions in the United States' inner cities. Crime, unemployment, drugs, poor schools, and a lack of

255 Page 250 Stewart positive role models characterize most, if not all, large urban areas and black males experience the brunt of the consequences of such conditions. Society has tried, to no avail, to address these problems thereby reducing their impact upon African-American males. Indeed, it seem as though the problems are getting worse rather than better. For example, prisons are filled with black males. Certainly, we are all too familiar with the statistic suggesting that more black males are involved in the criminal justice system than are in college. Homicides involving black males as victim or victimizer continue to exceed 10,000 per year. Finally, the estimated unemployment rate for black males ages 16 to 62 hovers around 50 percent (Center for the Study of Social Policy, 1991). With so many problems facing black males in urban areas, there is a need for innovative approaches, in and outside of the academic community, to deal with consequences these problems engender. The position taken by this author involves the use of Afrocentric strategies, particularlyresearchprocedures,forsolving problems affecting African-American males. Afrocentric strategies hold much promise primarily because they are more humanistic and less detached from the human experience. Where Afrocentric approaches have been used the benefits are numerous (see Jeff, 1994; ICarenga, 1994; and Madhubuti, 1990 above). Given their potential for reducing the problems facing African- Americans in general and black males in particular, Afrocentric strategies must experience a "proliferation" in use. African-American scholars and practitioners ought to be the major proponents of the perspective thereby ensuring a steady production of Afrocentric scholarship and research.

References

Akbar, N. (1991). Visions for black men. Nashville, TN: Winston-Derek Publishers, Inc. Akbar, N. (1984). Afrocentric social sciences for human liberation. Journal of Black Studies, 14(4), 395-413. Asante, M. (1988). Afrocentricity. Trenton, NJ: Africa World Press. Asante, M. (1992). African American studies: The future of the discipline. The Black Scholar, 22(3), 20-29.

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Aulette, J. & Perkins, D. (1992). Participatory research: A radical challenge to traditional social practice. Paper presented at the annual meetings of the Southern Sociological Society, New Orleans, LA. Baldwin, J. (1980) The psychology of oppression. In M.K. Asante and A. Vandi (Eds.), Contemporary black thought: Alternative analyses in social and behavioral science. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage. Baldwin, J.(1991) An Afrocentric perspective on health and social behavior of African-American males. Paper presented at the National Conference on Health and Social Behavior of African American Males, Howard University, Washington, D.C. Carruthers, J.(1972). Science and oppression. Chicago: Northeastern Illinois University Center for Inner City Studies. Cazenave, N. (1979). Middle-income black fathers: An analysis of the provider role. Family Coordinator, 28(4), 583-593. Demos, V. (1990). Black family studies in the Journal of Marriage and the Family and the issue of distortion: A trend analysis. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 52 (3), 603-612. Early, G. (1994). Defining Afrocentrism. The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education, 1(2), 46. Everett, J., Chipungu, S., & Leashore, B. (1991). Child welfare: An Africentric perspective. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press. Hopkins, R. (1994). Defining Afrocentricity discussion. Washington, DC: Department of Psychology at Howard University. Jeff, M. (1994). Afrocentrism and African-American male youths. In R. Mincy, Nurturing Young Black Males. Washington, DC: The Urban Institute Press. Kambon, K. (1992). The African personality in America: An African centered framework. Berkeley, CA: Nubian Nation Publications. Karenga, M. (1993). Introduction to black studies, 2"d Ed. Los Angeles, CA: The University of Sankore Press. Kunjufu, J. (1982). Countering the conspiracy to destroy black boys. Wilmington, DE: African American Images Press. Madhubuti, H. (1990). Black men: Obsolete, single, dangerous? The Afrikan American family in transition. Chicago, IL: Third World Press. Majors, R. & Gordon, J. (1994). The American black male: His present status and his future. Chicago, IL: Nelson-Hall.

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Marable, M. (1994). The black male: Searching beyond stereotypes. In R. Staples, The black family: Essays and studies. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Publishing Company. Mbilinyi, M. (1992). Research methodologies in gender issues. In Ruth Meena (Ed) Gender in Southern Africa: Conceptual and theoretical issues. Harare: Sapes Books. Neuman, W. (1994). Social research methods: Qualitative and quantitative approaches, 2"d Ed. Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon. Nobels, W. (1978).African consciousness andliberationstruggles: Implications for the development and construction of scientific paradigms. Unpublished manuscript. Oliver, W. (1991). Black males and social problems: Prevention through Afrocentric socialization. Journal of Black Studies 22(2), 190-209. Park,P. (1982). From universalismtoindigenization:Toward an emancipatory sociology. Paper delivered at Tenth World Congress of Sociology, Mexico City. Staples, R. (1993). The urban crisisrevisited. San Francisco, CA.: University of California. Schiele, J (1991). Afrocentricity for all. Black Issues in Higher Education, 8(14), 27. Stewart, R. (1991). African-American husbands: A study of black family life. Bristol, IN: Wyndham Hall Press. Taylor,R.J.,Chatters,L.M.,Tucker,M.B., & Lewis,E.(1990). Developments in research on black families: A decade review. Journal of Marriage and the Family 52(4), 993-1014.

23 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 253

LIBERATION RESEARCH AND PROJECT SOUTH: WEAPONS IN THE HANDS OF THE OPPRESSED

M. Bahati Kuumba State University College of New York at Buffalo & Project South Jerome Scott Project South and Up and Out of Poverty Now! Walda Katz-Fishman Howard University and Project South

Overview From Chiapas to LA; from San Juan to the South Bronx; from the Blackbelt South to Wounded Knee and the Pine Ridge Reservation; from Appalachia to Anacostiaa more pervasive and deeper poverty and a more intense oppression are the new realities of the 1990s. At the same time, a new spirit of rebellion, resistance, and struggle are emerging in those working class communities most affected. Against the backdrop of the first and second divisions of labor of the global economy, we find ourselves confronted with a technological revolution of world-transforming importance. The high technology of production and the service economy have a devastating impact on those of us left unemployed and underemployed. On the other hand, the productivity of high technology creates for the first time in human history an abundance of all the things we need. So it is a question of powerwho owns and controlsthe productive forces and the distribution of the goods and services that are produced. The ruling class, represented by Bill Clinton and Capitol Hill, wants to "end welfare as we know it"in one way or another. We want to "end poverty as we know it" once and for all. To be successful, two conditions must be met: 1) Workers atthe bottom (the unemployed, underemployed, welfare recipients, and all their children) must be organized; 2) The program and demands that guide our struggle have to be the program and demands that resolve the problems of those at the bottom. 259 Page 254 Kuumba et aL

To meet these conditions,itisessential to have a base of operationsperhaps a workers' center, a community center, a public librarya location that becomes a hub of political activity that includes educating and organizing. The formulation of a program and organizing strategies that flow from it require clarity and focus. The education and research needed for this process can best be carried out by a grouping of scholars and activists united as equals who are integrally connected to the base of operations. Organizing andeducatingincludingresearchmust go hand-in-hand. Our organizing must reflect the impact of the high tech revolution and postindustrial society in the global economy. And our education and research must provide the clarity necessary to fully grasp what this impact is. The socialcrisis that we currently face calls for Liberation Research. Liberation Research can be defined as a collective social investigation and knowledge-generation process for the expressed purpose of eliminating conditions of societal oppression. The contrast between the dominant, or dominating, model of social research and the Liberation Research model is evident at every stage of the research process. The first point of difference between the two models surrounds the decision about what deserves to be studied. At the topic selection phase, the mainstream research approach relies on the individual whims and interests of isolated intellectuals and scholars. The issues upon which the researchers focus may or may not coincide with real social priorities. In the Liberation Research model, topics for investigation emerge from the collectivities of persons actually experiencing and confronting the societal issue or problem. Research priorities are defined at the political level by organized groups that are actively engaged in the process of social change (Wolpe, 1985). This allows for insight and investment in the social reality under study that is absent in the mainstream approach. The theoretical perspectives and assumptions used to approach the object of research also differ between the dominant and Liberation Research models. The dominant research model primarily uses theories and assumptions that accept the major societal institutions as they presently exist. The Liberation Research model does the opposite. It

2C0 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 255 accepts the possibility of change and growth and is thus prepared to critically examine existing social institutions and explain issues within a dynamic, changing world. As opposed to attempting to superimpose theory onto reality, the Liberation Researcher attempts to allow the contours of the social reality to inform and revise theory. When data is being collected, the "dominating model" views the researcher as the "expert." Only the people possessing a particular type of education and training, equipped withspecific degrees and qualifications,are deemed worthy ofactuallyperformingthe investigation.Thisreinforcestheinequalityandhierarchical relationships that cause many of the problems in society. The Liberation Research process involves those in the midst of the social problem or issues in the data collection phase, as well as all the others. There is the underlying assumption that, with the proper tools and information, everyone is a researcher. As opposed to socially detached models of social research, participatory and egalitarian models seek to democratize and decolonize the research process. At the point of data analysis, most mainstream social research is preoccupied with identifying causal relationships that exist at one specific point in time. Researchers then attempt to generalize from the observed situation to other places and times, to formulation of universal laws. The actual context surrounding the social reality is viewed as an obstruction whose effects must be eliminated. A Liberation Researcher reminds us that the "historical quality of human beings and human societies makes it very difficult to develop general laws about human social behavior" (Bonacich, 1988). In response, the Liberation Research model assesses the current social conditions but focuses equally on identifying the forces and streams of change and motion. As opposed to merely isolating social variables, this approach also emphasizes the interrelated nature of social processes. Therefore, instead of attempting to "control for" and isolate the effects of social realities, it accepts the context as what "makes them meaningful, gives them shape, [and] puts them in history (Bonacich, 1988, p.12). Mainstream research also attempts to achieve "value-neutrality." That is, it attempts to consciously divorce itself from the social situation being studied. Thus the goal is to separate thought from action and 261 Page 256 Kuumba et al. knowledge from practice. A Liberation Research approach perceives the absence of values as artificial and, in contrast, calls for total involvement in the social issues under investigation. According to Mao Tsetung, "If you want to know a certain thing or a certain class of things directly, you must personally participate in the practical struggle to change reality" (Tsetung, 1972, p.209). The ways in which study findings are passed out to the general public or disseminated also differs between these two models. As opposed to viewing the products of research as "private property," a commodity to be bought and sold, the Liberation Research approach makes research findings as well as the tools to perform ongoing self- evaluation and research available and accessible to the community. It seeks to create a Liberation Research Loop where the results of the research add to the already existing motion and organization for positive social change. By taking the production and ownership of sociological knowledge out of the control of an elite few and placing it at the disposal of those most in need, the research process itself can be both a part of the liberation process and a model for social equality (Aulette and Perkins, 1992; Freire, 1980). Educating for Liberation: The Project South Model How do both scholars, particularly social science scholars, and activists understand the realities of this historic moment? How do we understand the realities of the high tech postindustrial society, the realities of the move toward a police state, the global context in which we all operate? Perhaps most importantly, how do we understand the education and research role that together scholars and activists can play in developing a strategy for the process of social transformation? A brief case study of Project South is presented to provide the experiential data from which to begin to articulate a model of "liberation" research and education for the struggles in the 1990s and beyond. Project South Mission Statement The Project South mission statement, as approved by the board at its February 4-6, 1994 meeting, is as follows:

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Project South: Institute for the Elimination of Poverty & Genocide is an education and research organization of scholars and activists. It seeks to develop and deepen the understanding of the historical and current role of social change in the South. This is done in relation to the social struggles in the rest of the United States and the world.

Brief History of Project South In 1986 the US government mounted its most extensive and costly FBI investigation of alleged vote fraud in the Black Belt South. You might assume it was directed against the southern white oligarchy that had historically intimidated blacks who tried to vote, even when it was legal to vote. Not so. This time the powerful US government turned its fire against those who just 20 years earlier had given their lives just to obtain their "democratic" right to vote. The federal government, in collaboration with local and state officials, launched this attack precisely because blacks were now winning elections and were now themselves in a position to defeat the West Alabama white oligarchy. Activists, scholars, and students from throughout the country gathered in Epps, Alabama, at the Federation of Southern Cooperatives to again mount a campaign for freedom and democracy against the campaign of terror and intimidation that the US government had unleashed. Unlike the most recent 30th anniversary of Freedom Summer that captured considerable media attention, the 1986 campaign was confronted with a virtual media blackout. Project South, at its inception, was born out of this campaign and the need to bring the message to activist and scholarly communities throughout the country: the South was once again becoming, and indeed had always been, a strategic battleground in the fight for equality, justice, and freedom not only for African Americans, but for all Americans. Through talks and lectures on campuses, at churches, unions, community groups, and scholarly organizations the work was begun. Project South agreed to provide the theoretical and factual truth about poverty and genocide in the South, the country, and the world to those involved in the struggle and their potential allies. Project South began to work out of the Georgia office that housed the Georgia 263 Page 258 Kuumba et al.

Citizens Coalition on Hunger and the headquarters of the Southern Region Up & Out of Poverty Now! Project South leadership participated in and helped organize several summits of the Southern Region Up & Out of Poverty Now! and was part of the editorial staff of Street Heat, the magazine of Southern Region Up & Out of Poverty Now! In short, Project South began to organize itself as the education and research arm of the emerging anti-poverty movement, particularly in the South. Project South presented and planned sessions at meetings of scholars and scholar activistsat the Southern Sociological Society, the Eastern Sociological Society, the Society for the Study of Social Problems, the Association for Humanist Sociology, the American Sociological Association, etc.. The reason for this was twofold: 1: To enter the scholarly debate about the causes for and solutions to poverty and genocide; and 2: To identify scholar activists who were willing to be part of this project. Lessons from the Project South Experience: Toward the Articulation of a Model of Liberation Education and Research We stated at the outset that education and research to develop a strategic understanding of society and a program for a new society are best conducted by scholars and activists united as equals and integrally connected to a base of operations. To unite as equals means we can not unite on the basis of white and/or middle class liberal guilt. We cannot unite as scholars advocating for activists. We must unite out of a common strategic understanding and a concrete strategy for power to resolve the real problems of those at the bottomthe homeless, the unemployed, the underemployed, those living in poverty, etc.. Unequals cannot be united. Any effort to do so that retains aspects ofstructural and/orattitudinal inequalityespecially white supremacywill fail. The question is how to create equality and unity? How to eliminate structural and attitudinal inequality in the relationship between scholars and activists?

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The answer is multifaceted and we can only begin the answer at this point. We consider where we meet, who initiates the process and how decisions are made, and the content of our education and research. Where We Meet The base of operations cannot be the university. Scholars cannot ask activists to come to the university and expect there to be an atmosphere of equality. The university has too many ties to the ruling class. It became a central player in the military industrial complex in the postwar years. It has a multitude of ties to the corporate class through research funding and schools of business and law. And, perhaps most importantly, academia is at the heart of the reproduction of elite culture and ideological hegemony in capitalist society. The base of operations must be in the community. But here too wemust be careful to safeguard our independence from elites. We are not talking about advocacy or service by scholars for the "poor"but an equal partnership for education and research for fundamental structural change. So we must work very hard to secure at least some funds without too many strings to be able to do this. Our experience is that even the most progressive funders will fund organizing, but are very reluctant to fund political education and research to inform strategic planning for fundamental political change. However difficult, the elimination of structural inequality and white supremacy between scholars and activists must begin with structural equality as a first step. The alternative of employing "sensitivity training" to resolve the attitudinal problem while the structural problems remain has never worked. Who Initiates the Process and Who Decides Joint or collective initiation, planning, and implementation of all projects and publications is a necessity. All decisions, including whether or not to collaborate at the outset, must be jointly made by scholars and activists. Bridges, scholars and activists from their respective communities who can interact in both worlds and act as interpreters, are absolutely essential for this process.

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It should be noted that it is as hard to bring activists to the table as it is to bring scholars. Not only do we not live in the same worlds, butwe do not always speak the same language. The language, jargon, of academe, of research and journals, and of funding are a foreign language to activists, and to most in the society. Activists, having been advocated for by "do-gooders" for as long as they can remember are rightfully suspicious of liberals from the academy. With the primacy of survival on the streets uppermost for activists and the longer time required to see the "results" of joint research and education work, activists often ask why they should take time from their activity to talk to scholars. For their part, the best of the scholarly community is up late at night trying to figure out how to maintain a professional career and, at the same time, how to do "socially meaningful" research, a real "survival" concern for scholars. Few are able or willing to do whatever is necessary if that means jeopardizing their career. Thus we have seen a renewed interest in community research and participatory research, "liberal" or "neoliberal" policy research, and critiques of mainstream scholarship. These forms do providean alternative to the mainstream for scholars, but are most often not what activists need or want. If scholars share no experience and means of communication with activists at the cutting edge of the struggle, how do we communicateor even think in the same terms? It is not easy. Many scholars are used to dealing with data as it has been collected through large government and private sector surveys. All too often activists are asking questions that these often flawed surveys cannot answer (a problem scholars know well). The point is, however, that academics simply adjust their research questions to fit the data and the funders, while activists need the information for practical and strategic planning. And this is more than an "academic question." To date in our experience it has been rare that scholars and activists will take the time to discuss what we can learn from the data, what the activists need to know, and how at least to get at this even if not as easily or cleanly as we both might like. Even scholar activists may talk to other scholars to no avail. On occasion scholars may say they will get the

268 FIRST URBAN ISSUES CONFERENCE Page 261 information that is difficult to access, but nothing materializes. Or they may say "oh we know this"in a general sort of wayso why bother? The point is not what some scholars may know theoretically and empiricallyamong themselves, in their journals and debates; it is also not what activists know from their experience and struggleslived experience and how they have chronicled it. The point is to change the world in a fundamental way. The model we are articulating evolved from and must continually evolve from the joint and equal efforts of scholars and activists. At no time can anyfurtherstepbetakenthatisnotcollectively conceptualized, planned, and carried out. It thus tends to be different from participatory or community research that, however well meaning and progressive, is usually initiated by one party (usually scholars) and is usually carried out without continuous collaboration. The closest thing we found in the literature was the participation of scholars, sometimes in national liberation struggles or socialist revolutionary struggles in the developing countries, doing research and education in this political context. Content and Division of Labor What we are arguing is that, in some sense, both scholars and activists must be part of a larger political process within which the research and education piece is embedded. We are further arguing that the content or program that guides the research and education must be the program of those at the bottom, those who have nothing to lose. What does this mean? It means that the solutions that are put forward as part of the research and education process be those that will resolve the problems of those most exploited and oppressed. The solution to homelessness is homes, not shelters and soup kitchens. The solution to the health care crisis is universal single-payer health care. The solution to poverty and welfare is jobs at a livable wage and a guaranteed livable income for those who cannot work. Etc... We can engage in many tacticse.g., electoral and legislative activity; expert testimony, lobbying, and letter writing to influential elites; demonstrations and protests; sit-ins and takeovers of housing, 267 Page 262 Kuumba et aL welfare agencies, and other government offices. We cannot, however, compromise on the strategic program that is put forward or turn back before the solutions needed are realized. Within this process there is need for a division of labor between scholars and activistseach doing what they are best prepared to do. The joint activities of organizing and educating are necessary to fundamentally transform society. Scholars, in the main, are best prepared to gather and summarize data and resources, to expose and debunk the bogus theories and dangerous policies of the ruling class to wage a real propaganda war in the interests of truth and those at the bottom. Activists, in the main, are best prepared to organize to turn up the street heat and to give strategic direction to the research and education process. Both are necessary; neither alone will be successful.

References

Aulette, J. R. & Perkins, D. G. (1992). Participatory research: A radical challenge to traditional sociological practice. Paper presented at the Southern Sociological Society Annual Meetings, New Orleans. Bolton, K. H. (1992). Participatory research: A practical approach. Masters thesis submitted to the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Bonacich, E. (1988). The loss of authenticity in social science: Research and the search for new ways of knowing. Paper presented at the American Sociological Association Annual Meeting, Atlanta, Georgia. Freire, P. (1972). Pedagogy of the oppressed. New York: Herder and Herder. Maxwell, N. (1992). What kind of inquiry can best help us create a good world. Science, Technology and Human Values 17(2):205-277. Mishel, L. & Bernstein, J. 1993. The state of working America. New York: M.E. Sharpe. Nkrumah, K. (1970). Consciencism. New York: Monthly Review Press. Tidwell, B. (ed). 1994. The state of black America. New York: National Urban League. Tsetung, M. (1972). Quotations from Chairman Mao Tsetung. Peking: Foreign Languages Press.

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Wolpe, H. (1985). The liberation struggle and research. Review of African Political Economy (32):72-78.

Resources

Building just relationships for the next 500 years: Report of Southeast Regional Economic Justice Network Gathering #3, Sept 1992. Southerners for Economic Justice, PO Box 240, Durham, NC 27702, phone 919-683-1361.

Peery, N. 1993. Ending an epoch of social revolution. Workers Press. PO Box 3705. Chi, IL 60654. 312-486-3551.

Jerome Scott Project South: Institute for the Elimination of Poverty & Genocide 250 Georgia Ave, Suite 344 Atlanta, GA 30312 Tel: 404-584-7141/441-6345 Fax: 404-584-5803 Email: [email protected]

Walda Katz-Fishman 6617 Millwood Rd Bethesda, MD 20817-6057 Tel: 301-320-4034; 202-806-6853 Fax: 301-320-4534 Email: [email protected]

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